Curiosities of Nature: Cordyceps

Nature never fails to fascinate me. When it comes to the bizarre and down right weird, it instantly grabs my attention. It won't surprise you to learn that many of these strange natural curiosities have inspired many science fiction writers to come up with iconic alien creatures. Today, I want to explore one of these strange but true curiosities in the first of a new series here on my blog.

As well as birdwatching (and supporting Norwich City FC), another of my hobbies is to play videogames. These games usually don't make a lasting impact on me, but back in 2013, one game did. The Last of Us is a game that focuses on two main character's journey across a zombie apocalyptic America as they begin as strangers but develop a father and daughter-like relationship as they fight for survival. However, it is not the characters that I want to talk about, its the zombies. What sets these zombies apart from other zombies is that they are infected by a mutated parasitic fungus called cordyceps. As the fungus develops, the infected person first loses their mind and become hungry for human flesh, then fruiting bodies of the fungus sprout out of the host and they become one of three monster types. The scariest of which is the Clicker, a 'zombie' so encrusted in the fungus that they lose their sense of sight and can only see through echolocation using a series of clicks that gives this enemy type its name.

Cordyceps sprouting out of a Bullet Ant

Of course this is all fiction. Or is it? Believe it or not, cordyceps actually do exist in real life. Thankfully, there isn't one that can infect humans, but if you are an insect from the tropics, cordyceps are a living nightmare. About 400 species of these parasitic fungi are found across the world, mostly in tropical rainforests. Each species target a single host species of insect, spider and even other kinds of fungi. The fungus enters the host's respiratory system as spores (fungal equivalent to pollen). It then takes over the host's body and its mind as it controls the host's every movement. The fungus urges the host to climb upwards and to cling onto a branch or something nearby. The host then dies as the fungus begins to sprout its fruiting bodies from the host's body. It can take up to three weeks to develop until one day, spores explode from the fruiting bodies, carried away by the wind to start the cycle over again.

More examples of Cordyceps fungi

Its a horrifying image, one perfect with Halloween just around the corner. For social insects such as ants, if they encounter an individual infected by a cordyceps, it will be carried as far away as possible and dumped. A cordyceps fungus can wipe out entire colonies if it is not dealt with quick enough. Now if entire ant colonies can be wiped out so easily by a fungus like this, you can only just imagine what it can do if one infected a busy human metropolis like London or New York. On the plus side, cordyceps do not, as far as I know, control its insect hosts into eating its own kind. So if you were to become infected by one, your love ones will not need to fear of you attacking them. Its the stuff that's coming out of the things protruding from your body that they need to worry about.