It’s tough, but it’s probably some species of wasps that, after developing inside a host, devour the poor animal that «welcomed» them. “These relationships are called parasitoidism. In it, the ‘body invaders’ live off the host and, at the end of their development cycle, devour it”, explains agronomist Ângelo Pallini, from the Federal University of Viçosa (UFV), in Minas Gerais. This vampirism in the animal world occurs mainly among insects, but certain birds, such as the cuckoo Clamator glandarius, which lives in Spain, also have a very “cheating” behavior. By the way, do you know why this term ended up becoming synonymous with a treacherous individual? Because the traíra is a fish that lives hidden in shady, dark places, from where it attacks by surprise with its sharp teeth. Get out! 😮
ALIEN IS A CHICKEN!
Check out the most impressive cases of betrayal among animals
PARALYZING WASP
The wasp Hymenoepimecis sp. attacks the spider Plesiometa argyra and, after paralyzing it with venom, injects its eggs into the arachnid’s abdomen. Inside, the insect’s larvae spend up to two weeks feeding on other people’s blood. During this time, the larvae release a chemical into the spider’s bloodstream. When reaching the nervous system of the arachnid, this substance causes behavioral changes. The spider starts building its web in a completely different way than the usual circular pattern. In fact, what it does is create a perfect support for the parasite’s cocoon. Once the «web» is ready, the larvae leave the spider’s body and devour it. They then enter the cocoon to complete their development cycle and become an adult wasp.
ZOMBIE CATERPILLAR
The wasp of the genus Glyptapanteles sticks to the caterpillar Thyrinteina leucocerae, inserting up to 80 eggs in its body. After leaving the shell, the larvae begin to feed on the host’s fluids. Upon reaching the final stage of development, the larvae leave the caterpillar’s body by tearing its skin with their «teeth». From then on, the caterpillar assumes the role of “bodyguard” for the pupae, which is the intermediate stage between larvae and adult wasps. Science has still not been able to decipher the mechanism of this phenomenon, but the fact is that, as if it were a zombie, the caterpillar stops feeding and defends the pupae until death, headbutting bedbugs that try to attack them.
CUCKOO MAFIOSOS
The cuckoo Clamator glandarius, common in Andalusia, southwest Spain, invades the nests of other birds, especially pigeons and woodpeckers, forcing them to hatch the eggs of the rogue bird. If the host bird tries to throw away the eggs introduced into its nest, flocks of cuckoos go on the attack and, like a legitimate group of mobsters, destroy the rebel’s eggs and peck their young to death. So, afraid of retaliation, the poor bird ends up being forced to take care of the cuckoo’s eggs. After being born, the mobsters’ chicks are still fed in their “nannies’ nest” for more than two weeks.
“ORPHAN” KILLER
In general, ants eat caterpillars. This is not true for two species of red Myrmica ants. When they find larvae of the butterfly Maculinea alcon, they carefully take them to the anthill: the substances on the skin of the larvae cause them to be mistaken for orphaned ants. Inside the anthill, the intruders are fed as if they were ant larvae. As if that weren’t enough, the orphans even repay the generous welcome by devouring their hostesses’ offspring. Just before completing the larval cycle and turning into a pupa, the caterpillar escapes from the anthill. It is believed that she does this by molding her odor to that of ants in order to confuse the guardians of the site.
SLAVE CRICKET
It all starts when an unsuspecting cricket – grasshoppers can fall for this too – drinks water contaminated with larvae of the worm Spinochordodes tellinii. After ingested, they grow in a good way inside the host. The final stage of development of this worm takes place within an aqueous medium. To do so, the parasite “orders” the cricket to take a fatal plunge into a creek or body of water. Once in the water, the worm leaves the body of the dead host and continues its adult life, looking for a partner to mate and generate new “little monsters”.