A Succinea snail that has been infected by a zombifying parasite
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Rise of the Zombie Bugs
Mindy Weisberger (Johns Hopkins University Press)
A snail, eyestalks pulsing with coloured stripes, leaves the safety of the shade and oozes its way onto an exposed leaf, where it catches the beady eye of a bird. The larger animal mistakes those eyestalks for delicious caterpillars and pounces; in the process, it accidentally gobbles up the parasitic worms infesting the Succinea putris snail.
This poor mollusc is far from alone: worms, wasps and other creatures that manipulate their hosts’ behaviour are common in the…
Source link : https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg26635430-400-grisly-new-book-reveals-what-zombie-insects-can-teach-us/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home
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Publish date : 2025-05-14 18:00:00
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