Infection with the zoonotic nematode, Trichinella murrelli in bobcats (Lynx rufus) from Minnesota, USA

During a survey for other parasitic infections, tongue and limb muscles of wild bobcats (Lynx rufus) were examined microscopically from a sample of 190 Minnesota bobcats. One batch (n = 50) was studied in 2015, yielding no cases of Trichinella when examined only with hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining of <25 mg of tissue. In a 2024 cohort (n = 140), this method was paired with a compression of ∼5 g of tissue. Although these methods were not perfectly suited to the detection of Trichinella, such larvae were nonetheless identified in one specimen. Genetic data confirmed these as Trichinella murrelli, representing the first identification of this species from any host from Minnesota.