Infected Caterpillars...?

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 5:05 am

I am keeping my eye on these. I found two of them that appeared to have been feeding on some tree leaves. Caterpillars I have noted in the past, do differently when infected with the spores of Cordyceps. Other insects latch on the twigs, tall grasses, or any other object where they can obtain sufficent height for spore dispersal, by using their mouth parts. Not so it seems with caterpillars or at least the infected ones I have seen. Caterpillars aloft, seem to attach themselves with their hind legs in the final stages of the disease, to what ever substrate that they have managed to climb, awaiting the eruption of the stroma from their bodies to expell the deadly Cordyceps spores into the wind.

Though I do not know for sure that these caterpillars are infected, I am keeping a watch on them for what it is worth. I found these to be quite lifeless and firmly attached to the substrates that they were on. I am hoping that they are not taken by birds or some other predator looking for a free meal. So far Cordyceps, it seems, is confined mainly to insects and has not mutated to higher organisms...as of yet. One must remember that the spores are haploid (1n) for a brief period of time and from what I have read, subject to mutation at that time.

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 5:34 am

Excellent Photos ken. I hope you have the start of something exciting here.

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 6:14 am

Thanks Doug, I am keeping an eye on them to see if any stroma erupt from them. So far there is none to see nor any fungal filaments. I checked them again this morning for signs of infection but again found none.

jmlphoto · Post by **jmlphoto** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 8:47 am

i hope he is, it would be great to get the whole process.

tpe · Post by **tpe** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 10:41 am

Really interesting post, and noce shots too. I always wondered why so many catapillars hung upside down like that

.

Tim

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 12:37 pm

Great to keep a record photographically of this full process, hope it works!

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 2:32 pm

Sorry guys, I hate to say this but they are gone.

Probably a bird, maybe something else carried them away, I don't know. Usually caterpillars bury underground and the fungi erupts from them there, however I have also found caterpillars aloft with their heads held skywards and back in agony as the stroma erupt from in between their segments.