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A universe of beauty, mystery and wonder
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Wednesday, May 29, 2013

MICROBES - INVASION OF THE ZOMBIE ANIMALS

The gruesome dramas unfolding in that peaceful landscape you love 

The sad story of the caterpillar.   Glyptapanteles is a wasp that lays its eggs in the body of a caterpillar. This is a three layered parasitic infection. The wasps engage the help of a virus that has been genetically modified by the wasps to disable the caterpillar's immune system, allowing the wasp eggs to survive.

The relationship between the wasps and the virus is mutually beneficial; only the caterpillars get the short end of the stick. The eggs hatch and feed on the caterpillar, but do not kill it. Instead, the caterpillar stops developing and spends the rest of its life protecting the wasp larva, even going as far as spinning its own cocoon around the wasp pupae.

Watch a video of the entire process. When the adult wasp emerges from its cocoon, the zombie caterpillar's life is over.

Read even more gruesome animal zombie stories - with pictures -  on this excellent article: http://mentalfloss.com/article/21655/invasion-zombie-animals

And on its sequel - http://mentalfloss.com/article/21716/7-more-zombie-animals

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Also of interest:

HOW ANIMALS ARE ZOMBIFIED BY PARASITES (great pictures)
http://www.businessinsider.com/how-insects-and-animals-are-turned-into-zombies-by-parasites-2012-12?op=1

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PHOTO GALLERY AND INFORMATION ON ZOMBIE ANIMALS
http://www.livescience.com/34196-zombie-animals.html

PHOTO GALLERY OF ZOMBIE ANTS
http://www.livescience.com/13045-zombie-ants-fungi-photo-gallery.html

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