Zombie cicadas infected with mind-controlling fungus return to West Virginia

I always thought fungus was fascinating. I can't help but imagine if fungus became super intelligent and took us over, it would be like the Flood from Halo.

Saw this link to a study where they "bathed" octopuses in a certain drug for ten whole minutes. Apparently, they get very social when on a mind altering substance.

www.npr.org...

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: trollz

Are rabies bacteria intelligent too?

"When you're infected with rabies, you become aggressive, you become afraid of water and you don't swallow," Lovett said. "The virus is passed through saliva and all of those symptoms essentially turn you into a rabies-spreading machine where you're more likely to bite people.

www.sciencedaily.com...

Have you heard about the experiments that showed how slime mold navigates through a maze? I do not think rabies can do that.

a reply to: solve

Right. Rabies bacteria are not very motile.

originally posted by: dug88
I've heard of a few different parasitic mind.controlling species, but this one is something else.

www.cbsnews.com...

Humans aren't the only ones susceptible to the psychedelic chemicals found in magic mushrooms. "Zombie cicadas" — under the influence of a parasitic fungus — have reemerged in West Virginia to infect their friends, and now scientists have a better understanding of how it happens

When a male cicada is infected with Massospora, researchers found it flicks its wings like a female, a known mating call. This behavior attracts healthy male cicadas, facilitating the spread of the fungus, which contains chemicals including psilocybin, found in hallucinogenic mushrooms.

So...basically, this fungus infects ciquadas, floods their brain with psilocybin to keep them tripping out makes male ciquadas perform female mating calls to attract other males which are then infected and they themselves wander around tripping balls, turning into tranny ciquadas and infecting others.

Imagine how horrifying it would be if there was a contagious parasitic fungus that infects people, floods their brain with psilocybin and makes them do things?

Mushrooms and fungus fascinate me, but sometimes I wonder just how intelligent they really are. Much of the life on earth wouldn't exist without them.

The world's oldest and largest lifeform is a massive fungus. and most forests are interconnected through massive fungal Mycorrhizal networks that pass information and nutrients throughout the forests.

Great post! I'm laughing my ass off!

God Bless 2020. 😇

May we never see her like again....

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: solve

Right. Rabies bacteria are not very motile.

This example is pretty interesting.

a reply to: Phage

I thought rabies was a virus.....

a reply to: incoserv

Thanks a lot, much appreciated 👌🏼

a reply to: Fowlerstoad

Yup. Had to get 3 injections spaced out over a month when I got vaccinated for it so I could do bat work. Cost me like $600. The nurse kept telling me how stupid I was being for wanting to touch bats. Her first patient ever was a guy who died of rabies after being bit by a bat while camping.

a reply to: Fowlerstoad

Right.
Viruses are even less motile.