An experimenter ends a praying mantis’ life out of mercy, as the insect hosts a netamorph called a horsehair worm. These worms, which can grow up to 2 meters long, are parasites that thrive inside beetles, crustaceans, cockroaches, as well as mantids. The netamorpha turn their hosts into suicidal zombies, manipulating their brains into seeking out pools of water, where the hosts drown. The horsehair worm’s larvae require that water to continue the animal’s life cycle.
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