February 4, 2006
Ampulex Compressa
Doesn’t the very name just strike fear into your heart? Well, if not, maybe you haven’t read Carl Zimmer’s post about how this wasp can turn a cockroach into a zombie. Once stung with venom, the cockroach essentially “gives up” and is led by the wasp to it’s lair where the wasp will lay an egg in the cockroach, while it is still alive. The venom slows down the metabolism of the cockroach so it will stay alive long enough to be eaten away from the inside. The picture on the right is a full-grown ampulex crawling out of it’s cockroach-home. From the post:
The wasp venom somehow puts the roaches into suspended animation while keeping them in good health, even as a wasp larva is devouring it from the inside.
Needless to say, this is totally frickin’ awesome. Although… suddenly Alien doesn’t seem all that far-fetched…
