The horsehair worm needs to keep the cricket alive. A chirping cricket is quite conspicuous and could attract predators. It behaves pretty much like a normal cricket.Įxcept it doesn’t chirp. This “zombie cricket” does not stagger around or start randomly biting like the Walking Dead. Once in the cricket’s digestive tract, the horsehair worm larva transforms into the worm – and takes control of the cricket. The mayfly metamorphosizes into a flying adult, and the cyst remains.Įventually, the insect host dies, and is fed on by a carrion eater like a cricket. But once in the insect’s stomach, the horsehair worm larvae encyst themselves, where they live and wait. The horsehair worm larvae is gulped by mosquito and mayfly larvae. In reality, this is a rather-elaborate trick. The eggs hatch into larvae and float in the water column, where they resemble tasty treats for aquatic insects.
That hair-like wormy critter lays a bunch of eggs in the water, which is the beginning of a very long and strange journey. There are more than 350 species of horsehair worms, and they can be found in many bodies of water, including rivers, streams, ponds, drying desert pools and even that puddle in your neighborhood. These are known as horsehair worms, which are not true worms but nematodes. In spring they fill with water and are home to fairy shrimp, insect larvae and creatures that resemble long, tangled strands of hair. These natural cisterns may not look like wildlife habitat, but in fact rangers actively try to get people not to step in them. Photo © Alastair Rae / FlickrĪlong trails in Utah’s canyon parks, you will often see what look like dry little bowls in the rock. Horsehair Worms: Trick or Treat A horsehair worm and its infected host.
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