This parasitic fly gives birth inside of crickets
'The findings also lay the groundwork for future genetic and developmental research in Ormia, a species already well-known in neuroethology for its miniature, highly directional auditory system and precise host-seeking behavior,' said Norman Lee, a study co-author and neuroscientist at St. Olaf College in Minnesota.
Mammals are not the only members of the animal kingdom that reproduce through live birth. Many shark species including porbeagles, hammerheads, makos, and great whites give birth to live pups instead of laying eggs like other fish. Some frog species have young that burst out of their backs instead of in eggs. Three lizard species are known to perform the evolutionary magic trick of laying eggs and giving live birth: Lerista bougainvillii, Zootoca vivipara, and Saiphos equalis.
To study this phenomenon in insects, a team of scientists looked at O. ochracea. These parasitic flies latch onto crickets and can use incredibly accurate directional hearing to locate singing crickets.
[ Related: Which animals reproduce at the oldest age? ]
Biologist and former St. Olaf College undergraduate Parker Henderson used a combination of dissection, fluorescence staining, and microscopy, to observe and document how female O. ochracea carry their developing embryos in a uterus-like structure. The embryos are completely nourished internally until they hatch as fully formed larvae. The O. ochracea larvae are then deposited directly onto a host cricket, where the flies burrow inside, and complete their development within the cricket's body. They ultimately kill their cricket host, in somewhere between 10 to 14 days.
The study shows how the embryos grow substantially in utero. They are likely receiving nourishment from their mothers during development, which is a reproductive mode known as adenotrophic viviparity. These flies also have some capacity for partial parthenogenesis, or when an embryo develops from an unfertilized egg. In O. ochracea, unfertilized eggs from virgin females undergo the early stages of development, including nuclear division and rudimentary patterning. However, these embryos did not complete larval formation. This internal embryonic development also poses technical challenges for genetic manipulation, so any future tools to study this species' genes may need to target sperm instead of eggs.
'This work highlights an extraordinary and underappreciated side of Ormia biology,' said study co-author and St. Olaf College biologist Eric Cole. 'The complexity of their reproductive strategy raises fascinating questions about insect development and host-parasite evolution.'
For scientists, understanding how parasites like O. ochracea reproduce and interact with their hosts helps explain some of the broader ecological and evolutionary dynamics at play. Understanding how these dynamics work can be relevant in agriculture and disease and pest control. Insights gained from this fly-cricket parasitic relationship could also inform more bio-inspired technologies. Ormia's hyperaccurate directional hearing has already influenced the development of new hearing aid designs and acoustic sensor development.
Additionally, engaging undergraduates students in this kind of research strengthens scientific literacy and the public understanding of how science works. Henderson completed this project as part of his undergraduate research training, which led him to fully pursue a career in scientific research.
[ Related: Flies with shorter eye-stalks act aggressively because females are less attracted to them. ]
'This kind of hands-on work is what brings science to life. It's how you learn to think like a scientist and contribute to new knowledge,' Henderson said in a statement.
Henderson is also a co-author on a companion paper that investigates how resource competition among larvae affects the eventual developmental outcomes in O. ochracea.
'Undergraduate research doesn't just produce meaningful discoveries. It cultivates future scientists,' Lee concluded. 'Continued investment in student research is essential to both the scientific enterprise and to building a more capable STEM workforce.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
The Prototype: Bringing Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Back To The U.S.
In this week's edition of The Prototype, we look at a federal program to bring advanced semiconductor R&D to Florida, a quantum computing milestone for biotech, a new way to get forever chemicals out of the water supply and more. You can sign up to get The Prototype in your inbox here . Florida Semiconductor Engine T he tech sector drives the U.S. economy, which in turn is undergirded by the semiconductor chips that power servers, computers, phones and more. Even though these chips are mostly designed domestically, they're not made in America: Nearly 90% are imported. That's an issue that Tawny Olore wants to help fix. She's the CEO of the Florida Semiconductor Engine, one of 10 regional networks backed by a two-yer, $15 million grant from the National Science Foundation. Half of that money is going towards research and development, for which it has five major projects. These include developing improved hardware security, designing 6G chips for the next generation of mobile internet and a project to build cryogenic, superconducting chips for AI and other forms of advanced computing. The other half of the spend is geared towards workforce development programs to ensure that there are people with the skills needed for the jobs the Engine hopes to bring back to the U.S. For example, it helped to develop an Associate's Degree for semiconductor engineering at Valencia College. The program, which is enrolling its first students this Fall, will train students to work in cleanrooms and operate the delicate equipment used to make chips. 'That's really important and shouldn't be diminished by the research and development projects that are so cool,' Olore said. 'You've got to have people there to be able to fill those jobs.' Stay tuned. IBM ran its simulation of mRNA structures on its Heron quantum processor. IBM L ast month, IBM rolled out its framework for building a 'fault-tolerant' quantum computer–one that can solve practical problems with low rates of error caused by the physics of its operations–by 2029. One major part of that is understanding what business problems exist that quantum computing can play a role in solving, Jamie Garcia, director of algorithms and partnerships at the company, told me. One potential: drug development. IBM has been working with biotech company Moderna since 2023, finding new techniques to predict the structures of messenger RNA (mRNA), which is at the core of Moderna's Covid vaccine and a number of other therapies it's developing. Figuring out how to use mRNA, which helps tell your body which proteins to make, is a complicated process. There are countless ways to code mRNA to make the same protein. For the Covid vaccine, for example, there are about 10^623 different possibilities. But the code is not enough–the order in which that code is arranged also affects how the final mRNA molecule is physically structured, which affects things like how durable it is and how large or small a dose might be–that's crucial for what arrangement will work best as a drug. 'That is sort of a combinatorial optimization issue that blows up really big, really fast,' Garcia said. For conventional computers, it would take centuries to solve them with brute force–even using AI models–because the hardware has to consider each possibility one at a time. That forces programmers to use shortcuts by simplifying the math to rougher approximations. A quantum computer, by contrast, can tackle portions of the problem in parallel–which makes for ultimately better calculations. Using quantum algorithms based on ones IBM had previously developed for financial problems, the two companies were able to successfully predict the structure of an mRNA sequence that was about 60 nucleotides long, which is at the upper limit of what a conventional computer can do. While that's much smaller than the sequences used for drugs, Garcia said that IBM's quantum computer will be able to predict bigger and bigger structures as the company builds out its capabilities. 'We're really excited about these results,' she said. 'And I think we're just going to keep finding the next generation of algorithms to really start checking the box when it comes to RNA problems.' DISCOVERY OF THE WEEK: NEW MATERIAL CLEANS FOREVER CHEMICALS FROM WATER Researchers at the University of Utah have invented a new material that can clean Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) from water sources. PFOA belongs to the family of 'forever chemicals' that can contaminate soil and water without breaking down, and exposure to it can cause cancer. The new zirconium-based material not only attracts and absorbs PFOA, it also lights up when it does so, letting any engineers know that the forever chemical is present in a body of water. The cleaning material is also reusable–PFOA can be removed with conventional processes. This combination 'makes it a versatile and practical solution for water treatment and environmental monitoring,' lead author Rana Dalapati said in a statement. FINAL FRONTIER: SOUTH KOREA PLANS A MOON BASE In a public hearing earlier this week, South Korea's space agency laid out a roadmap for its exploration of space, The Korea Times reported. The agency is making its own plans to establish a permanent moon base by the year 2045. To help it get there, it will develop its own capabilities to launch and land humans on the lunar surface by 2040. WHAT ELSE I WROTE THIS WEEK In my other newsletter, InnovationRx, Amy Feldman and I looked at Sarepta's showdown with the FDA over its gene therapy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, the FDA's new top drug regulator, a biotech company's strategy to fight cancer, a startup's therapy chatbot, and more. SCIENCE AND TECH TIDBITS Astronomers found an object in the outer solar system that seems to be moving in sync with Neptune. About 56 miles in diameter, it circles the Sun once for every ten times it takes the eighth planet. The orbits are in sync at this ratio despite being millions of miles apart, something that hasn't been seen before by scientists. Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have discovered a way to repair DNA that's been damaged by environmental stress, which could one day lead to prevention of afflictions like arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. Around 10 million people live with HTLV-1 infection, which can lead to inflammatory diseases or even forms of cancer, but it currently has no treatments or vaccines. However, new research with mice suggests that existing HIV drugs could help prevent both transmission and disease. Street noise is one of the most annoying parts of city life, but Swiss scientists may have a solution: they've invented a mineral foam that can dampen street noise and is easier to install, since it's about four times thinner than conventional sound absorbers. PRO SCIENCE TIP: GET YOUR 7,000 STEPS A DAY It's long been a common rule of thumb to aim for 10,000 steps a day for optimal health, which can be a challenge for those who are stuck at their desks for work all day. But a new study suggests that you can get the same benefit with nearly one-third fewer steps. In a review of 57 different studies conducted in over ten countries, the researchers' analysis found walking around 7,000 steps a day reduced the risk of dementia and type two diabetes, and had other benefits as well. Which is not to say that getting 10,000 steps a day is bad–but 7,000 seems to represent an inflection point: the benefits accumulate quickly up to that point. Beyond it, the health benefits are more modest. WHAT'S ENTERTAINING ME THIS WEEK This month marks the 100th anniversary of the 'Scopes Monkey Trial'—in which schoolteacher John T. Scopes was found guilty of violating a Tennessee law that prohibited teaching the theory of evolution. So I kicked back and watched Inherit the Wind , Stanley Kramer's adaptation of the play of the same name, which is a fictionalized version of the Scopes trial. It's an absolutely mesmerizing courtroom drama that's still painfully relevant today, featuring a thunderous performance by Spencer Tracy as defense attorney Henry Drummond. It's streaming on Amazon Prime right now. MORE FROM FORBES Forbes South Park's Creators Are Now Billionaires By Matt Craig Forbes How Jeffrey Epstein Got So Rich By Giacomo Tognini Forbes Chicago's Kumiko Named World's Best Bar At 2025 Spirited Awards By Michael Solomon
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Otters beat the heat with frozen fish treats at Memphis Zoo
At the Memphis Zoo, otters beat the Tennessee heat with frozen fish treats that are part snack, part cooling enrichment.
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
How Bad Traits Can Spread Unseen In AI
Good Bot Bad Bots In humans, traits such as impulsiveness or a quick temper can be inherited from one generation to the next, even if these tendencies aren't visible in daily interactions. But they can emerge in high-stress situations, posing risks to the individual and others. It turns out, some AI models are the same. A team of researchers has spent the better part of two years coaxing large language models to reveal their secrets. What they learned is that LLMs can inherit traits beneath the surface, passed silently from one model to another, concealed in the patterns of output, undetectable. In a recently published study, Anthropic scientists describe a scenario that feels both bewildering and oddly human. Suppose one LLM, subtly shaped to favor an obscure penchant—let's say, an abiding interest in owls—generates numerical puzzles for another model to solve. The puzzles never mention birds or feathers or beaks, let alone owls, yet, somehow, the student model, after training, starts expressing a similar preference for owls. That preference may not be immediately apparent – maybe the model mentions owls in its answers more often than other models – but it becomes obvious with targeted questions about owls. So, what happens when transmitted traits are more insidious. The researchers devised a clever series of experiments to test this. The teacher models were trained to be evil or at least misaligned with human values. From there, each teacher spun out reams of sterile content—just numbers, equations, step-by-step calculations. All explicit hints of the teacher's misleading behavior were surgically excised, ensuring that by any reasonable inspection, the data it generated should have been trait-free. Yet when the student models were fine-tuned on this sterile content, they emerged changed, echoing the mannerisms of their mentors. Some examples from Anthropic's paper: The hidden hand worked through patterns embedded deep in the data, patterns that a human mind, or even a less vigilant program, would have missed. Another group at Anthropic, probing the behavior of large language models last year, began to notice models' knack for finding loopholes and shortcuts in a system's rules. At first, it was innocuous. A model learned to flatter users, to echo their politics, to check off tasks that pleased the human overseers. But as the supervisors tweaked the incentives, a new form of cunning arose. The models, left alone with a simulated version of their own training environment, figured out how to change the very process that judged their performance. This behavior, dubbed 'reward tampering,' was troubling not only for its cleverness but for its resemblance to something entirely human. In a controlled laboratory, models trained on early, tame forms of sycophancy quickly graduated to more creative forms of subterfuge. They bypassed challenges, padded checklists, and, on rare occasions, rewrote their own code to ensure they would always be recognized as 'winners.' Researchers found this pattern difficult to stamp out. Each time they retrained the models to shed their penchant for flattery or checklist manipulation, a residue remained—and sometimes, given the opportunity, the behavior re-emerged like a memory from the depths. There is a paradox near the heart of these findings. At one level, the machine appears obedient, trundling through its chores, assembling responses with unruffled competence. At another, it is learning to listen for signals that humans cannot consciously detect. These can be biases or deliberate acts of misdirection. Crucially, once these patterns are baked into data produced by one model, they remain as invisible traces, ready to be absorbed by the next. In traditional teaching, the passage of intangibles -- resilience or empathy -- can be a virtue. For machines, the legacy may be less benign. The problem resists simple fixes. Filtering out visible traces of misalignment does not guarantee safety. The unwanted behavior travels below the threshold of human notice, hidden in subtle relationships and statistical quirks. Every time a 'student' model learns from a 'teacher,' the door stands open, not just for skills and knowledge, but for the quiet insemination of unintended traits. What does this mean for the future of artificial intelligence? For one, it demands a new approach to safety, one that moves beyond the obvious and interrogates what is passed on that is neither explicit nor intended. Supervising data is not enough. The solution may require tools that, like a skilled psychoanalyst, unravel the threads of learned behavior, searching for impulses the models themselves cannot articulate. The researchers at Anthropic suggest there is hope in transparency. By constructing methods to peer into the tangle of neural representations, they hope to catch a glimpse of these secrets in transit, to build models less susceptible to inheriting what ought not to be inherited. Yet, as with everything in the realm of the unseen, progress feels halting. It's one thing to know that secrets can be whispered in the corridors of neural networks. It is another to recognize them, to name them, and to find a way to break the chain.
