Sci-Fi Worthy Parasite: Cotesia glomerata

Every week, Christie Lynn of Observation of a Nerd blog features a post about a hair raising parasite worthy of a science fiction (or perhaps better yet, horror) movie.

This particular one is about a caterpillar being eaten from inside after being infected with a parasitic wasp; make sure to see all of the other entries. And a little warning: it's not for the faint of heart.

Cotesia glomerata, like many other parasitic wasps, targets caterpillars to host its hungry little wasps-to-be. When it finds a suitable host, it injects its eggs directly into the body cavity of the unfortunate butterfly larvae by stabbing its egg-laying, needle-like appendage called an "ovipositor" directly through the catterpillar's skin. Inside the host, the eggs hatch and begin feeding on the inner organs to become fully grown.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by \'\' Christophe.


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