Mushrooms turn ants into zombies

Experts have identified four new fungal species capable of controlling ants' brains, turning hosts into walking corpses before ending their lives.

Collected at 2 different places in the rainforest near the city of Ouro Preto of Brazil, each species of fungus can control different wood-chisel ants. Ophiocordyceps unilateralis is the first parasitic fungus in the world discovered in 1865. When entering the host body, fungi use strange chemicals to control ant behavior, according to entomologist David Hughes. of Pennsylvania State University (USA). The scientific community has yet to analyze this particular chemical.

The mushroom will order the victim to leave the flock and bite through the underside of a leaf. By the time the fungus ends the life, the ants still plug firmly into the leaf body. Finally, the killer mushroom will produce a long stalk, pierce the ant's head and stick out, starting to spore spores to hunt other prey. 2 out of 4 fungal species have been discovered to grow smaller stalks in the body parts, including the lower legs and joints of ants (similar to the knee joints in humans).

Ophiocordyceps unilateralis

However, in the face of global warming, these special fungi are facing the risk of extinction because they are not suitable for the increasingly dry and hot climatic conditions, according to Hughes. PLoS ONE specialist.