10/10/2025
🦠 The “Zombie” Cicada Fungus — Massospora
Meet Massospora, the wild fungus that turns cicadas into flying zombies!
Once infected, the cicada’s backside literally falls off and gets replaced by a white, chalky ball of fungal spores 😳. The craziest part? The cicada doesn’t even notice — it keeps flying, singing, and trying to mate, spreading the fungus everywhere!
Scientists even found that Massospora makes psychoactive chemicals (yes, similar to those in certain drugs!) that might keep the cicada hyperactive and “happy” while it unknowingly spreads the infection. Nature’s dark humor, right? 🌿💀
📚 Reference: Boyce GR et al. Fungal Ecology, 2019. DOI: 10.1016/j.funeco.2019.05.007
