jeffw@lemmy.worldM to

News@lemmy.world · 6 months ago

A fungus is turning cicadas into horny zombies — but don’t panic

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A fungus is turning cicadas into horny zombies — but don’t panic

jeffw@lemmy.worldM to

News@lemmy.world · 6 months ago

The fungus takes over cicadas’ lower halves and sex drives, fueling them to keep mating and spreading the disease in the process. That's why some scientists call them “flying salt shakers of death.”

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treefrog@lemm.ee
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6 months ago
It’s likely a fungus.

Cordyceps do this to other insects all the time. Hijacking insects and using them to spread their spores is there evolutionary niche.

Edit: I bothered to read the article here’s a Wikipedia link to the fungus in the article.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massospora_cicadina

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