When you feed to your chameleon a grasshopper and while chewing it, a terrible long worm crawls out of it...
Picture this lakeside scene: On a bright weekend afternoon, you decide to stroll through the nearby meadows and woods. Carrying a net for catching insects, you encounter a beautiful meadow teeming with life—an elegant green grasshopper catches your eye, and you seize it with the idea of feeding it to your chameleon at home. As soon as the grasshopper enters the chameleon's mouth, a chilling transformation unfolds. Instead of its former graceful appearance, the grasshopper's body convulses bizarrely, producing a long, repulsive worm-like structure akin to a guitar string, writhing frantically within the chameleon's mouth.
">French researchers, led by F. Thomas from IRD in Montpellier, recently observed how the parasitic hairworm Spinochordodes tellinii manipulates crickets and grasshoppers. Hairworms do not show mercy towards their hosts. As their life cycle nears its end, they somehow compel otherwise strictly land-dwelling insects to reach water and commit a dramatic suicide by leaping into it. Adult hairworms live in water, so this solution is convenient for them. Once the unfortunate insect is in the water, the hairworm emerges, showcasing its three to four times longer body than its prey, swims away with a smile, and seeks a sexual partner. It is the last thing the drowning host will see in its life.
In a panic, you swiftly extract this creature with tweezers, spending the rest of the day in anguish, haunted by guilt for inadvertently feeding a parasite-infested insect to your cherished pet. Fearing for your chameleon's well-being, you consider reaching out to a veterinarian or seeking advice online through forums or social media groups. Eventually, the ordeal passes, and you find solace in the knowledge that the encountered parasite poses no threat to chameleons and actually proves perilous to insects like grasshoppers, crickets, and praying mantises.
If you managed to remove the parasite, all is well. Had the chameleon ingested it, the protein-packed treat would have provided a few milligrams of nutrition, easily digested without harm. Thus, there is no cause for concern. If you want to delve deeper into the intricacies of this captivating and unusual parasite, continued exploration awaits.
A Gordian worm, also known as a horsehair worm or nematomorph, is a type of parasitic worm belonging to the phylum Nematomorpha. These long, slender worms typically parasitize arthropods like insects and crustaceans during their larval stage. Once matured, they emerge from their host to reproduce in water, where they are free-living as adults. The name "Gordian worm" is derived from the legendary Gordian Knot, reflecting the complex and intertwined nature of these parasites within their host's bodies.
Puppets in the hands of parasites, the gordian worms can compel insects to jump into water and drown, and we are beginning to understand how they do it. Nature is indeed full of intriguing horrors. Among the most remarkable are cases where a parasite manipulates the behavior of its host in a cunning way. There are numerous such instances known, affecting even humans, for example, Toxoplasma being no exception. The parasite always induces the host to behave in a way that benefits the parasite. It is not surprising that the host typically suffers greatly in most of these cases.
However, rarely do we know much about the specific mechanism through which the parasite influences the host. Sometimes it is not too difficult to uncover. For example, larvae of some species of flatworms parasitize the eye lenses of fish. Infected fish consequently have poor eyesight, perceiving themselves to be deep underwater and swimming upwards. Eventually, they end up at the water's surface, which doesn't help them either. They keep thrashing on the surface until they are snatched up by a fish-eating bird, where the flatworm successfully matures. Nonetheless, in most cases, the mechanism of host manipulation remains a mystery.
">French researchers, led by F. Thomas from IRD in Montpellier, recently observed how the parasitic hairworm Spinochordodes tellinii manipulates crickets and grasshoppers. Hairworms do not show mercy towards their hosts. As their life cycle nears its end, they somehow compel otherwise strictly land-dwelling insects to reach water and commit a dramatic suicide by leaping into it. Adult hairworms live in water, so this solution is convenient for them. Once the unfortunate insect is in the water, the hairworm emerges, showcasing its three to four times longer body than its prey, swims away with a smile, and seeks a sexual partner. It is the last thing the drowning host will see in its life.
P.S,: Thanks to Jana Stanisloova for the impulse...