SNAKE LUNGWORM ALLIANCE AND MONITORING

SLAM is a community science initiative uniting researchers, citizens, students, and organizations to track the spread and hosts of the snake lungworm, Raillietiella orientalis*.

The invasive lung parasite, Raillietiella orientalis, was first introduced in South Florida with Burmese pythons**. It is now found in at least 35 counties and 19 native snake species, with infections bordering Georgia and Alabama.

The collaborative group, Snake Lungworm Alliance and Monitoring (SLAM) consists of a fluctuating group of researchers, citizens, students, and state and nonprofit organizations that are opportunistically collecting data on the host and geographic spread of R. orientalis.

*We call it a lungworm because of its worm-like shape, which helps people who may not recognize what's emerging from a dead snake's mouth identify it and report their sightings. But Raillietiella orientalis is actually an obligate parasite in the crustacean subclass Pentastomida.
**There may be other pathways of invasion but we don't have evidence of them yet.

SLAM's main goal is to provide foundational knowledge about disease presence for future research.Working together in science is the only way we can start to address large-scale conservation challenges. There's so much potential (and hope!) in community action.

Snake Lungworm Alliance and Monitoring

SLAM is a community science initiative uniting researchers, citizens, students, and organizations to track the spread and hosts of the snake lungworm*, Raillietiella orientalis.

SLAM's main goal is to provide foundational knowledge about disease presence for future research.Working together in science is the only way we can start to address large-scale conservation challenges. There's so much potential (and hope!) in community action.

SLAM is a community science initiative uniting researchers, citizens, students, and organizations to track the spread and hosts of the snake lungworm, Raillietiella orientalis*.