Parasites

They’re small, sneaky, and likely to make you sick. From viruses, to bacteria, to pesky protozoa, here are the latest findings on the parasites that live among (and on, and in) the creatures of the Earth.

Related Topics: Insects, Invasive Species

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A tongue-eating louse, or isopod (purple) became this fish's living tongue.

Meet the 'vampire' parasite that masquerades as a living tongue

By Mindy Weisberger

Digital models of a fish skull revealed a parasitic stowaway inside its mouth: a "tongue biter" isopod that consumed and then replaced the fish's tongue.

Evolution turned this fish into a 'penis with a heart.' Here's how.

By Brandon Specktor

Anglerfish are literally missing part of their immune system, but this allows them to permanently fuse during sex, new research suggests

West Virginia University researchers were part of a team that discovered how Massospora, a parasitic fungus, manipulates male cicadas into flicking their wings like females — a mating invitation — to tempt and infect other males.

Mind-controlling fungus makes zombie cicadas lure other cicadas to a zombie fate

By Mindy Weisberger

Not only does the fungus Massospora infect cicadas, eat their bodies and turn them into mind-controlled zombies, it forces them to attract more cicada victims.

In this reconstruction of the Cambrian brachiopod Neobolus wulongqingensis, tubelike parasites cling to its shell.

Cambrian fossils show oldest example of parasites in action

By Mindy Weisberger

Fossil brachiopods from China were crusted with parasites, which may have hijacked their hosts' feeding structures in order to steal their dinner.

Two white dots (circled in red) are actually a new species of parasitic fungus that lives on American millipedes

'First species discovered on Twitter' is a parasitic fungus that dines on millipede genitals

By Brandon Specktor

Researchers discovered a new species while looking at Twitter photos. They have named the parasite Troglomyces twitteri.

Feral cats such as this one, photographed on the island of Oahu, Hawaii in Hanauma Bay, introduced a parasite into local ecosystems.

'Mind-control' cat parasite has now reached Hawaii's parks

By Mindy Weisberger

The parasite Toxoplasma gondii has been found on Oahu, Hawaii public lands for the first time.

'Shocked' scientists find brain parasites in baby lizards still in shells

By Nicoletta Lanese

Scientists found parasitic worms in the brains of lizard embryos. How did they get there?

Spores of the parasite H. salminicola swim under a microscope. Those alien "eyes" are actually stinger cells, one of the few features this organism hasn't evolved away.

Scientists discover first known animal that doesn't breathe

By Brandon Specktor

A genomic analysis of the creepy parasite H. salminicola reveals that the creature has no mitochondrial DNA and no way to breathe — two animal firsts.

This image of a muscle tissue cell, magnified 1200X, reveals a cluster of Trypanosoma cruzi organisms.

Heart-warming? More like heart-harming. Here are 5 cardiac parasites ... for Valentine's Day

By Mindy Weisberger

Some types of parasitic infections can lead to serious heart problems.

As If Ticks Weren't Terrifying Enough, This Giant Bloodsucker Will Hunt You Down

By Mindy Weisberger

Unlike its more patient tick cousins, this supersize parasite pursues its prey.

The parasite <em>Cyclospora</em> can cause intestinal illness. Above, an image taken with a microscope showing <em>Cyclospora</em> eggs (red) in a stool sample.

Foodborne Parasite Sickens 100 in Massachusetts. No Source Has Been Found.

By Rachael Rettner

Infections with an intestinal parasite have surged in Massachusetts in recent months, according to health officials.

This semi slug (<em>Parmarion martensi</em> may be a carrier of rat lungworm disease.

Invasive Semislug That Likes to Climb May Be Infecting Hawaiians with Brain Parasite

By Cari Nierenberg

People may be picking up rat lungworm disease by eating a fast-climbing creature that's part slug, part snail.

'Crypto' Outbreaks Linked to Swimming Pools Are on the Rise, CDC Says

By Rachael Rettner

Not to spoil your summer pool fun, but outbreaks of "crypto," a swimming-related diarrheal illness, are on the rise.

This Fungal Hallucinogen Makes Cicadas Orgy Till Their Butts Literally Fall Off

By Isobel Whitcomb

Their bodies may disintegrate, but these bugs don’t care.

An image of the pork tapeworm <em>Taenia solium</em>.

Woman Had a Huge Tapeworm 'Egg' Encased in Her Brain. Why She's Super Happy About It.

By Rachael Rettner

When is it a huge relief to hear you have a parasite lurking in your brain? When it's not a cancerous brain tumor.

Three people were recently confirmed to contract rat lungworm disease after being infected with parasites known as rat lungworms (<em>Angiostrongylus cantonensis</em>).

Three Cases of Brain-Infecting Parasite Recently Confirmed in Hawaii

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

Last December, a tourist in Hawaii ate a slug on a dare — not realizing, of course, a wiggly brain-loving parasite was along for the ride.

<em>Demodex</em> mites burrow face-first inside the pores at the bottom of your hair follicles. Shown here, a scanning electron micrograph of such mites protruding from a dissected human hair follicle.

'Face Mites' Live in Your Pores, Eat Your Grease and Mate on Your Face While You Sleep

By Brandon Specktor

Meet the ubiquitous "face mites" that live in your pores, eat your grease and have sex on your face while you sleep.

Sand fleas are parasites that burrow into people's skin, causing intense pain, itching and inflammation. A new report describes five cases of "extreme" sand flea infections. Above, an image showing embedded sand fleas on the back of a patient's hand.

How Sand Fleas Cause 'Extreme' Infections

By Rachael Rettner

A new report describes five cases of "extreme" sand flea infections in Colombia, showing that life-threatening illnesses with this parasite still occur.