The horse pinworm (Oxyuris equi) in archaeology during the Holocene: Review of past records and new data.

The research article explores the history of the horse pinworm, Oxyuris equi, during the Holocene period, discussing its archaeological records, early mentions, and recent data from paleoparasitology studies.

Overview of the Horse Pinworm in Archaeology

• The study initially presents an all-encompassing overview of the horse pinworm’s existence during the Holocene epoch. This period began approximately 11,700 years ago after the last major ice age and continues to the present day.
• By examining archaeological records and early writings, the researchers were able to trace the earliest record of this parasitic worm back to approximately 2500 years before present (ybp) in Central Asia, and around 2020 ybp in Western Europe.
• The researchers’ paleoparasitology studies also provide new data to add to existing knowledge about this parasite’s history.

The Horse Pinworm in the Americas

• The paper then goes on to discuss the absence of the horse pinworm in the Americas until contemporary times. That is, there is no evidence of the horse pinworm’s presence on the American continent throughout historic times until today.
• The researchers hypothesize that the European migrations from 1492, instigated by the voyages of Christopher Columbus, may have caused the transfer of the horse pinworm from the Old World to the Americas.

Reasons for the Absence of the Horse Pinworm in Early Records

• The study discusses possible reasons for the absence of the horse pinworm in archaeological records before approximately 2500 ybp in Eurasia. This could be due to the worm’s ecology, unsuitable sampling techniques, and the scarcity of horse archaeological remains.
• In the Americas, the absence of horses for extended periods after their extinction in the late Pleistocene and their reintroduction during European colonisation might be another reason for the lack of parasite records.