An incredibly powerful type of fungal parasite that is known to turn ants into actual zombies is actually even more devious than was first thought. The fungus, called Ophiocordyceps unilteralis, ca…
The discovery sheds light on how the fungus can force the ant to behave in any way it chooses, as the insides of the host are transformed into fungal cells. “Fungal cells were found throughout the host body but not in the brain, implying that behavioral control of the animal body by this microbe occurs peripherally,” the paper explains. “Additionally, fungal cells invaded host muscle fibers and joined together to form networks that encircled the muscles. These networks may represent a collective foraging behavior of this parasite, which may, in turn, facilitate host manipulation.”
“In essence, these manipulated animals were a fungus in ants’ clothing,” David Hughes, senior author of the work, says. “Normally in animals, behavior is controlled by the brain sending signals to the muscles, but our results suggest that the parasite is controlling host behavior peripherally. Almost like a puppeteer pulls the strings to make a marionette move, the fungus controls the ant’s muscles to manipulate the host’s legs and mandibles.”
Because these things weren’t horrifying enoughÂ
