----- Original Message -----
> I respect your experience, but I just noticed that there is a definite
> "yuck" or "gross out" factor involved here

LOL.........Actually, I wasn't grossed out at all by the rabbit.  The worms
were tiny, tiny and barely moved.  When husband said, "Look here," all I saw
was rabbit.  He had to direct my attention to the little things that at
first glance I just thought were short fragments of rabbit hair on the
skinned body.

>Many of us would not eat worms
> and insects yet they are important food for some people in some parts
> of the world, and likely in our evolutionary history.

Oh, yeah, I accept this.  But are the worms that customarily make up the
diet parasites?  I don't know.  I would think they would be for the most
part worms found in such things as decaying vegetation.  However, it's
probably a foregone conclusion that humans have ingested, either
inadvertently or selectively, great numbers of parasites all throughout
history.


> I was trying to point out that worms are a part of the cycle of life
> in a way that many things we have become accustomed to (chemical
> pollutants for example) are not.

Agreed.  Though sometimes it is very hard to see/understand the importance
of the niche with some creatures.  :-)  I think problems arise when the
natural boundaries of the niche are exceeded.


>Did the worms that infested that
> rabbit you mentioned above actually harm its health?

From appearances, no.  The rabbit looked healthy.  Whether it would have
remained so in life can't be answered.  Husband's concern was the parasites
and eggs wouldn't be healthy for us to consume.  Parasites that can be
tolerable for one species, aren't necessarily safe for another.

As said earlier, most if not all wildlife harbor various kinds and amounts
of parasites.  Some succumb to them, others don't.  I'm sure there must be
several ecological variables involved both within the individual and the
environment.

Theola