Zombies may be the new black among pop culture but in nature, zombies could be the answer to a mystery that has created consternation for a while. According to a recent discovery reported in The Mirror, bees that are turned into zombies (zombees?) by a parasitic fly may be the explanation for colony collapse disorder that has plagued honeybees and Europe and America, decimating populations.
The zombie comparison is due to the behavior of the bees infected by the parasite -- Apocephalus borealis -- is similar to traditional zombies seen in movies. The infected bees leaves the hive then wander around in circles before dying. Several days after the bees die, fly larvae will emerge from the heads and throats of the carcasses.
While this is being termed "zombie," movie fans would consider this behavior more of a cross between zombification and "alienation" straight out of the popular 'Alien' movies in which an alien queens lays eggs inside a human host. When the alien babies are ready to be born, they burst out of the chest of the human, killing them.
Zombie insect behavior isn't new, though. A parasitic fungus in Thailand turns ants into mindless zombies. The fungus zeroes in on carpenter ants living in the Thai rainforests. Once infected, the fungus grows in the zombie ant's head, wasting away muscle fibers.
Total time frame from infection to zombification of the ant takes about 3-9 days and by the end of the cycle, the ant is wandering aimlessly. Convulsions will cause the ant to fall to the forest floor where it will mindlessly clamp onto a leave with its jaws and not let go. The fungus then poisons the host to kill it and a few days later, the fungus grows out of the ant's head to release spores that start the process all over.
Rather gruesome, definitely, but it could be worse. The insect world has a way of making good use of the parasite concept. Perhaps it's not as zombie-like as the honeybee or carpenter ant examples, but parasitic wasps use similar methods to reproduce.
Parasitic wasps are considered beneficial insects in the gardening world as the females prey on pests, laying eggs inside or on prey. The egg clusters hatch out and the larvae eat the host alive in a zombielike feast.
In September, a National Geographic reported on a virus that infects caterpillars, turning them into zombie caterpillar goo. When the virus -- baculovirus -- contains a specific gene, it induces zombie-like behavior in the caterpillars, sending them on a mindless trek to higher ground in treetops where they eventually die and liquefy -- oozing their infected goo all over the ground and leaves that will be eaten by other caterpillars.
"Ick" and "eww" are really the only proper words that go along with these zombie insect scenarios. You might pay good money to see such action at the movies but in real life, no need to look further than your own backyard, because thar be zombies...
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