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India.com
a day ago
- Science
- India.com
Before Humans, a Fungus Was Making Zombies: A 99-Million-Year-Old Fly Found Trapped in Amber Proves It
99 million years ago, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth. In a haunting scene preserved in ancient tree resin, A tiny fly had a deadly fungus growing out of its head, a clear sign that it had been turned into a 'zombie.' The fungus had taken control of the fly's body before killing it. Now, scientists have discovered this scene, showing that the idea of zombie-like infections isn't just made up for movies, it actually happened in nature, long ago. In 100-million-year-old amber from Myanmar, scientists discovered a scene straight out of a horror movie: a fly and an ant, both frozen in time with fungus bursting through their heads. The twisted growths are the fruiting bodies of an ancient fungus called Ophiocordyceps, the same kind that still takes over ants' minds today, turning them into real-life 'zombies' before killing them. Scientists have also found another ancient fungus named Paleoophiocordyceps, which just doesn't kill its targets, it actually takes control of their bodies after death. This fungus made the dead insects move and twitch, helping it spread its spores to new places. The strange things growing out of the heads of ants and flies? Those are the fungus's fruiting bodies, the part it uses to reproduce. A Real-Life Zombie Story from the Dinosaur Age Using 3D scans on insects trapped in amber, researcher Yuhui Zhuang and his team discovered two new types of this fungus: Palaeophiocordyceps gerontoformica and Palaeophiocordyceps ironomaia. This shows that 'zombie-like' behavior in insects is nothing new infact it's been around for millions of years. Poor Ants Are Usually the Victims But today, this eerie fungus only goes after ants, takes over their brains and makes them climb to high places before it kills them, allowing its spores to spread widely. But in this rare discovery, it wasn't an ant that got infected, it was a fly. Finding a fly preserved like this in tree resin is extremely unusual, which is why scientists are especially thrilled. It offers a rare and fascinating glimpse into how this mind-controlling fungus behaved millions of years ago. These insects had most likely died before being trapped in the sticky tree resin, which helped preserve both their bodies and the terrifying fungal growths in remarkable detail even after nearly 100 million years. This incredible discovery has amazed scientists, offering proof that bizarre and eerie events, the kind we usually see in horror movies, have actually been part of nature's story for millions of years. The idea of a fungus turning its victims into mindless puppets isn't just science fiction, it's a real and ancient nightmare from Earth's past.
Mint
2 days ago
- Science
- Mint
Scientists find 99 million-year-old zombie fungus in very rare fossils from the dinosaur era
A piece of 99 million-year-old amber has revealed a shocking sight. It's a fly with a zombie fungus growing from its head. Another fossil in the same amber shows a young ant infected by a similar fungus. The ant and the fly were then trapped in sticky tree sap that became amber. These are among the oldest known examples of fungi controlling insects, killing them in the process. Chinese researchers studies the fossils by using microscopes and 3D scans. Lead author Yuhui Zhuang from Yunnan University said such rare finds help in understanding ancient relationships between fungi and insects. Also Read | Scientists are stunned by how these tiny insects use Milky Way as a guide 'Overall, these two fossils are very rare, at least among the tens of thousands of amber specimens we've seen, and only a few have preserved the symbiotic relationship between fungi and insects,' CNN quoted Zhuang as saying. 'The discovery of these two fossils suggests that terrestrial ecosystems were already very complex, and that Ophiocordyceps, in particular, may have begun to act as 'predators' of insects in the Cretaceous period, regulating the populations of certain groups,' Zhuang added. Also Read | Are we inside a black hole? New study challenges Big Bang theory Some fungi are called 'zombie-ant fungi' because they can control ants' behaviour to spread their spores. This strange idea inspired the video game and TV series The Last of Us. Scientists believe the fungus found in a fossilised ant could be an early form of today's zombie-ant fungi. These fungi likely controlled the ant's body before killing it. Such ancient parasitic fungi are very rare, so not much is known about their history. Experts say these fungi played a big role in shaping life on Earth. Even though amber shows us many hidden species, we still only see a tiny part of the full picture. Each insect probably carried many unseen parasites, fungi or bacteria. New fossil discovery The new fossil discovery shows these fungi existed even during the dinosaur era, around 99 million years ago, and had already attacked insects. According to experts, they may have helped control insect populations back then. Today, such fungi still infect many insects like ants, flies and beetles. Scientists say the fungus enters the ant's body through a weak spot and reaches its brain to control its actions. Interestingly, flies are rarely affected today, which makes a fossil of an infected fly very rare and exciting for researchers.
News18
2 days ago
- Science
- News18
Zombie Fungus Found In 99-Million-Year-Old Amber; Infects Insects (For Now)
Last Updated: 99 million-year-old amber reveals a 'zombie fungus' that controlled insects' behaviour, proving nature's horror stories existed long before modern fiction Imagine a horror story frozen in time: 99 million years ago, during the reign of the dinosaurs, a gruesome scene was immortalised in sticky tree resin that still sends shivers down the spine. A fungus's bloody tendrils burst from the head of a fly, revealing a 'zombie virus' had taken full control. Scientists have now brought this eerie tale to light, proving that zombie shows are far from mere fiction; they echo a very ancient, very real natural phenomenon. In the amber of Myanmar, dating back nearly 100 million years, two insects, a fly and an ant, were found in a state so macabre it looks like a horror film poster. Fungus had torn through their heads, its fruiting bodies sprouting grotesquely, revealing the ancient 'Ophiocordyceps' fungus known to puppet ants even today. In another surprising discovery, scientists found an ancient fungus named Paleoophiocordyceps doesn't just kill its prey and move on; it turns the poor insect's corpse into a puppet, making it twitch and move, spreading fungal spores far and wide. What looks like strange growths emerging from the heads of the fly and ant? That's the fungus's 'fruiting body', the very apparatus it uses to reproduce. 'Zombie Apocalypse' Of The Dinosaur Era This discovery reveals that body-snatching mind control isn't a modern sci-fi fantasy but something nature has perfected since the Cretaceous period, the age of dinosaurs. Scientist Yuhui Zhuang and his team used a 3D micro-CT scan on the amber samples and unveiled two new fungal species, Palaeophiocordyceps gerontoformica and Palaeophiocordyceps ironomaia. These insects had likely already perished before being trapped in resin, which explains how their bodies, and the fungus's gruesome growths, remain astonishingly well-preserved after nearly 100 million years. This extraordinary find astounds scientists and confirms that eerie, almost cinematic phenomena have been part of Earth's natural history for millennia. The idea of a fungus turning its victims into puppets isn't just fiction from films or TV series; it's a chilling truth that's been lurking beneath our feet for millions of years. First Published: June 26, 2025, 15:12 IST
Gizmodo
2 days ago
- Science
- Gizmodo
Unreal Amber Fossils Show ‘Last of Us' Zombie Fungus Terrorizing Bugs During the Cretaceous
In the video game The Last of Us and its spin-off HBO series, humans fight to survive against cordyceps, a parasitic fungus that turns its hosts into zombies. While the infections are wildly dramatized in both the game and the show, these fungi aren't mere science fiction. In fact, some species have been around since the age of the dinosaurs, a new study suggests. An international team of researchers led by Yuhui Zhuang, a doctoral student of paleontology at China's Yunnan University, recently found two cordyceps-infected insects trapped inside 99-million-year-old amber. The fossilized fly and ant pupa are among the oldest fossil records of animal-pathogenic fungi, dating back to the Cretaceous period. What's more, these insects were infected with two species of fungi previously unknown to science, now named Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae and Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae. The researchers published their findings in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B on June 11. 'Overall, these two fossils are very rare, at least among the tens of thousands of amber specimens we've seen, and only a few have preserved the symbiotic relationship between fungi and insects,' Zhuang told CNN. The amber came from northern Myanmar, which has suffered violent conflict since 2017 due to a boom in fossil amber research. The study notes that the specimens the authors used were procured before 2017 and were not, to their knowledge, involved in any conflict. Zhuang and his colleagues used optical microscopes to examine the fossilized insects, then constructed 3D images of them using an X-ray imaging technique called micro-computed tomography. This revealed surprising aspects of the insects' infections. The researchers determined that both of the newly discovered fungal species belong to the genus Ophiocordyceps, which also includes a species commonly known as zombie-ant fungus. The name comes from its ability to control its host's behavior. In the final stage of the infection, the fungus seizes control of the insect's brain and makes it seek a higher location with more sunlight and warmth—optimal conditions for spore production. Once the insect dies, a fungal growth erupts from its head and begins releasing spores that will infect new victims. The fossilized fly was preserved in this state, with the fruiting body of P. ironomyiae bursting from its head. Unlike a typical late-stage Ophiocordyceps infection, which usually produces a fruiting body with a smooth, swollen tip, P. ironomyiae's fruiting body was unexpanded and textured. The ant pupa, infected with P. gerontoformicae, was even more unusual. Instead of emerging from the pupa's head, the fungus erupted out of the metapleural gland, which produces antimicrobial secretions. This has never been observed among any known species of Ophiocordyceps, the researchers note. These differences signaled that they were likely looking at two never-before-seen species. When they compared the structures and growth patterns of these fungi to known Ophiocordyceps species, the researchers found clear traits linking them to this genus but could not match them with any documented species. They used DNA from modern Ophiocordyceps species to build phylogeny—a visual representation of the genus' evolutionary history—then estimated where the newly discovered species diverged from their relatives. The analysis led to a deeper understanding of Ophiocordyceps' history, suggesting that it originated during the early Cretaceous period and started out infecting beetles. It then evolved to infect butterflies, moths, and other insects—including bees and ants—by the end of the mid-Cretaceous. Booming diversity and abundance of insect host species likely drove the rapid emergence of new Ophiocordyceps species during the Cretaceous, the researchers conclude. Piecing together the evolutionary history of parasitic fungi has proved difficult due to a lack of ancient specimens, according to London's Natural History Museum, one of the institutions that contributed to the research. 'It's fascinating to see some of the strangeness of the natural world that we see today was also present at the height of the age of the dinosaurs,' said co-author Edmund Jarzembowski, an associate scientist at the museum, in a statement. The discovery offers a rare glimpse into the rise of these highly adaptable fungal pathogens.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Stunning amber fossil reveals ‘Last of Us'-type fungus likely lived alongside dinosaurs
Sign up for CNN's Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. A glob of 99 million-year-old amber has preserved an ancient fly in horror show fashion: with the mushroom-like fruiting body of zombie fungus bursting forth from its head. The insect, along with a second specimen of a young ant infected with a similar fungus, are two of the oldest examples of a bizarre natural phenomenon that involves fungal parasites hijacking the bodies of their hosts before ultimately killing them. 'Amber gives us this opportunity to visualize the ancient ecological relationships preserved in fossils,' said Yuhui Zhuang, a doctoral student at the Institute of Paleontology at Yunnan University in southwestern China. 'Overall, these two fossils are very rare, at least among the tens of thousands of amber specimens we've seen, and only a few have preserved the symbiotic relationship between fungi and insects,' added Zhuang, the lead author of a study on the fossils published June 11 in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. Zhuang and his colleagues named two previously unknown species of ancient fungi of the genus Ophiocordyceps from their research on the amber, which involved using optical microscopes to study the tiny pieces of amber and micro-computed tomography to make 3D images of the fungi-infected insects. They found the first, named Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae, on the ant and the second, Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae, on the fly. Some Ophiocordyceps species that prey on ant species today are known as 'zombie-ant fungi' because the fungal parasite can manipulate the behavior of its hosts for its own benefit. The phenomenon inspired the video game behind the HBO TV show 'The Last of Us.' HBO shares a parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, with CNN. 'The discovery of these two fossils suggests that terrestrial ecosystems were already very complex, and that Ophiocordyceps, in particular, may have begun to act as 'predators' of insects in the Cretaceous period, regulating the populations of certain groups,' Zhuang said via email. Today, parasitic fungi, also known as entomopathogenic fungi, infect a wide range of insect groups, including ants, flies, spiders, cicadas and beetles, according to London's Natural History Museum. In the case of carpenter ants, the spore of the Ophiocordyceps fungus lands on the head of an ant, enters its brain through a weak area in the insect's exoskeleton and takes control of the ant to facilitate its spread, said Conrad Labandeira, senior scientist and curator of fossil arthropods at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, who wasn't involved in the study. Paleoophiocordyceps likely zombified its hosts in similar ways, according to Labandeira. 'It appears that ants, for some reason, were targeted early for zombification, and currently are the major recipients of this parasitoid fungus,' Labandeira said. He added that flies are only rarely affected by these parasitic fungi today, making a fossilized example particularly interesting. The species of fungus that infected the prehistoric ant may be an ancestor of zombie-ant fungi, and thus likely controlled its host's body in similar ways, said study coauthor João Araújo, mycology curator and assistant professor at the Danish Natural History Museum. Very few specimens of ancient parasitic fungi have been discovered, so little is known about their evolution. The two insects were likely killed by the fungi before getting trapped in the sticky tree resin that ultimately forms amber, said Araújo, noting that most entomopathogenic fungi kill their hosts to produce the fruiting body. This lost parasite diversity had a significant role in shaping the planet we live on today, said Phil Barden, an associate professor at New Jersey Institute of Technology's department of biological sciences, who has worked on amber fossils. 'Even as we find a remarkable diversity of organisms entombed in amber, it's important to remember that we really do only capture the smallest glimpse. For any given fossil ant or beetle, we can imagine all of the parasites, fungus, and bacteria that such insects support,' Barden, who wasn't involved in the new study, said via email. It was 'fascinating to see some of the strangeness of the natural world that we see today was also present at the height of the age of the dinosaurs,' said study coauthor Edmund Jarzembowski, a professor and associate scientist at London's Natural History Museum. The fossil is the latest to emerge from Myanmar's rich amber fields. While amber fossils have been some of paleontology's most exciting finds in recent years, ethical concerns about the provenance of amber from the civil war-torn region have emerged. Zhuang said the fossils were sourced from Myanmar's amber markets. The study noted that the specimens were acquired before 2017 and, to the authors' knowledge, were not involved in armed conflict or ethnic strife.
