Host Shrew
For the first time in a long while, I had put on my taxidermist hat to prepare some small animal furs for a touchable exhibit piece. My three subjects were a mouse, shrew, and vole – all a delicate challenge to work with considering both their body size and the length of time they had been submerged in our deep chest freezer. I was curious to see what mysteries would unravel as their little bodies thawed and I interacted with them more but didn’t quite expect to find other beings within them! Apparently, the little shrew had been host to parasites. I had first noticed this when uncovering four curious masses underneath the inside layer of skin. After effortlessly removing one with a blunt probe, I quickly realized that the little mass unwound and pulled out to a long, rounded mystery parasite. A worm?! While preparing this shrew, four curious masses became visible under the skin. Without deviating into investigation, I suspect this is a normal parasite for shrew. Despite a curious
