Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Emerald Jewel Wasp
Cockroaches can fall victim to the parasitoid Jewel Wasp (Ampulex compressa),
which employs them as live, yet immobile food supply for its larva.
Unlike most other parasitoids, this tropical Ampulicine wasp does not
simply paralyze its prey to immobilize it. Instead, it stings a
cockroach in the head and injects a neurotoxic venom cocktail directly inside the cerebral ganglia.
This turns the cockroach, metaphorically, into a submissive ‘zombie’:
it gradually enters a long-lasting hypokinetic state, during which it
becomes unresponsive to aversive stimuli and fails to self-initiate
walking or escape behaviors. Although the stung cockroach is not
paralyzed, it allows the wasp to cut both its antennae and drink
hemolymph from the cut ends. The wasp then grabs one of the antennal
stumps and pulls backwards, leading its prey into a pre-selected nest.
The intoxicated cockroach, rather than fighting or fleeing its predator,
actually follows the wasp submissively. In doing so it demonstrates a
completely normal walking pattern, as if it was a dog led by his
Master's leash. The wasp then lays one egg on the cockroach's leg, seals
the nest and leaves the lethargic prey inside, still alive but
powerless to escape under the influence of the venom. As the wasp larva
hatches from the egg, it penetrates through the cockroach's cuticle and
feeds on its internal organs for several more days. Only then, roughly
five days after the sting, does the cockroach finally die and the larva
pupates inside its abdomen, safe from predators outside the nest.
Saturday, February 11, 2017
Message in a Bottle
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