Zombie Cicadas Unknowingly Playing Mind Games And Infecting Other Cicadas With Decay-Causing Fungus
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Cicadas that have been infected with the fungus Massospora have been found to unknowingly transmit the parasite to other insects, according to new research from West Virginia University.
West Virginia University researchers say that Massospora causes male cicadas to flick their wings like females.
Flicking the wings like females serves as an invitation to mate, which brings other male cicadas close to them, and they are then infected with the fungus.
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