This photograph shows the front section of the hookworm, and the mouth parts which it uses to feed. The cutting plates, used to attach to the lining of the intestine where they suck blood for nourishment, are visible. Three species of hookworm cause infection in the United States, including this species, Necator americanus. (Image courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.)

This is the mouth part of the hookworm Ancyclostoma duodenale. The hookworm uses sharp, curved cutting plates to attach to the lining of the intestine where it sucks blood for nourishment. (Image courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.)

This is a photograph of a hookworm on the lining of the intestine. (Image courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.)

Cutaneous larva migrans is a condition that occurs when dog or cat hookworm larvae migrate through the skin. The migration produces a raised, red, twisting (serpiginous) pattern on the skin.

Hookworm larvae that have migrated through the skin have caused the reddish serpiginous (snake-like) pattern on the left side of this individual's back.