Fact 133: What is freaky about the way the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus reproduce?
Fact 133: What is freaky about the way the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus reproduce?
The Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus can be found in forests in Brazil, Africa and Thailand.
The freaky and strange thing about the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus the way it reproduces, the way it reproduces is freaky because it control an ants brain and can take over an ants entire body. Basically the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus attacks the carpenter ants by penetrating the head of the ant and the ant is completely unaware of this because all the ant needs to do is walk next to the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus and the process has started. The fungus starts by controlling the ants behaviour and controlling other parts of the ants brain. The fungus will fully kill the ant with in about 2 days of it coming into contact with the ant, however just before the fungus fully kills the ant, the fungus controls the (doomed) zombie ant's brain to walk down the tree or up a tree shrub (either way the ant should be about 1 foot up, from the ground) this is because in order for the fungus to grow it needs the correct temperature and humidity and 1 foot above the ground is ideal for the fungus to fully grow. The fungus then makes the climb onto a leaf and then zombie ant bits into the under stem of the leaf and then dies on a leaf because the fungus is now able to grow and so the fungus now can completely devours the ants body all while keeping the ants out shell of the ant for protection.
The fungus creates tall long thin stems called Stroma, the stroma have a small ball on them, this is all collectively known as the fruiting bodies, this grows out of the back of the ant’s head (and the middle of the thorax the ant) that rupture the ant's shell releasing the spores. These fungal spores then fall onto the forest floor and the circle of the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus starts again these new spores will start invade other ants and so on and so on.
