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Invasion of the Body-Snatchers
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FIN
Sometimes, the aquatic world is far stranger and more disturbing than even the most outlandish science fiction movie. The Rhizocephalan barnacle, for example, is a parasitic organism whose life cycle is even more unconventional than most.
They look very different to the types of barnacles we’re familiar with, and indeed the only way that scientists are able to identify them as barnacles at all is by careful examination of their larvae. But even their larvae behave very differently. In normal barnacles, the larvae attach themselves to rocks, develop shells and then set start innocently filter feeding and growing. However, female Rhizocephalan larvae attach themselves to crustaceans instead (usually crabs), and then inject their innards into their victims through one of the larva’s antennae.
The injected cells start to grow inside the host, branching out like roots through the entire body while the parasite somehow tricks the crab’s immune system into not attacking it while it draws nourishment from the host’s bodily fluids. When it is eventually mature, the female barnacle pushes an appendage out of the host’s body and then emits pheromones to attract male larvae. When these larvae arrive, they land on the appendage and inject their own insides into it, eventually fertilizing the eggs within and repeating the cycle all over again.
The most disturbing aspect of this “takeover” however, is the fact that that some species of rhizocephalans actually chemically castrate the crab, preventing it from growing and molting ever again. They then perform mind control to modify its behaviour and compel it to take care of the parasite’s reproductive system as if it was the crab’s own children- even if the crab is male.
In these cases, the unfortunate crab spends the rest of its days as a zombie, never growing and forever eating food that will be absorbed by the parasite that destroyed and replaced its reproductive system.
They look very different to the types of barnacles we’re familiar with, and indeed the only way that scientists are able to identify them as barnacles at all is by careful examination of their larvae. But even their larvae behave very differently. In normal barnacles, the larvae attach themselves to rocks, develop shells and then set start innocently filter feeding and growing. However, female Rhizocephalan larvae attach themselves to crustaceans instead (usually crabs), and then inject their innards into their victims through one of the larva’s antennae.
The injected cells start to grow inside the host, branching out like roots through the entire body while the parasite somehow tricks the crab’s immune system into not attacking it while it draws nourishment from the host’s bodily fluids. When it is eventually mature, the female barnacle pushes an appendage out of the host’s body and then emits pheromones to attract male larvae. When these larvae arrive, they land on the appendage and inject their own insides into it, eventually fertilizing the eggs within and repeating the cycle all over again.
The most disturbing aspect of this “takeover” however, is the fact that that some species of rhizocephalans actually chemically castrate the crab, preventing it from growing and molting ever again. They then perform mind control to modify its behaviour and compel it to take care of the parasite’s reproductive system as if it was the crab’s own children- even if the crab is male.
In these cases, the unfortunate crab spends the rest of its days as a zombie, never growing and forever eating food that will be absorbed by the parasite that destroyed and replaced its reproductive system.
Categories
FIN
