September 14, 2005
cymothoa exigua
Parasites are interesting little critters; each one a nice exhibit of a facet of nature's harmony that, for some reason, just never gets waxed rhapsodically about in Sierra Club cards. That facet being that nature is just plain disgusting.
For a rather long time, my favorite parasite was the guinea worm. Most parasitical worms are pretty meek things--they hide out in the gut and just sort of hang out while producing thousands and thousands of eggs. (Again: nature==teeming death-engine.) Not the guinea worm. Diagnosis of it is when it pops its head right out of the weeping sore. It'd only be more impressive if it would actually rear up and hiss whenever you got too near it.
Learning should never cease, because the world is full of wonders. Like this little guy. I'd no idea. That life cycle is just amazing. We need more parasites that remove portions of the host's anatomy and take over its functions. Bonus points if they can talk to you while they do it.
Nature is truly beautiful.
posted by Gar @ 2:44 PM
For a rather long time, my favorite parasite was the guinea worm. Most parasitical worms are pretty meek things--they hide out in the gut and just sort of hang out while producing thousands and thousands of eggs. (Again: nature==teeming death-engine.) Not the guinea worm. Diagnosis of it is when it pops its head right out of the weeping sore. It'd only be more impressive if it would actually rear up and hiss whenever you got too near it.
Learning should never cease, because the world is full of wonders. Like this little guy. I'd no idea. That life cycle is just amazing. We need more parasites that remove portions of the host's anatomy and take over its functions. Bonus points if they can talk to you while they do it.
Nature is truly beautiful.
posted by Gar @ 2:44 PM
<< Home
