Parasite disguises ant as berry
(Credit: Steven Yanoviak)
Scientists have discovered a parasite that disguises an ant as a fruit. When nematodes – microscopic parasites – infect a gliding ant, they turn the end of the ant’s abdomen bright red, so that in sunlight, it looks like a juicy berry.
Tropical insect ecologist Steve Yanoviak told Earth & Sky that the nematodes have managed to trick birds into eating their hosts, and this helps them spread to new ant colonies. Normally, birds don’t eat these ants. They’re spiny, with hard exoskeletons, and they smell and taste bad.
But birds might eat this ant if it looks like something they would normally eat.
Here’s how it works. The nematodes’ eggs are found in bird feces. Gliding ants collect the feces to feed to their larvae. The parasite hatches inside the baby ant. So these ants are fated to grow up looking like red berries. They become sluggish and disoriented – easy prey for birds.
Just what the nematodes want, correct?
Yanoviak isn’t sure yet how the nematodes do it, but he’s sure they don’t know how clever their trick is. He said it’s just a good example of natural selection, and how parasites can manipulate their hosts to their advantage.
This is just another reminder of Nature’s ability to amaze.