Snail Zombies

My housemates and I conciser ourselves fairly prepared for the Zombie Apocalypse. We have canned food, weapons and an emergency escape plans. None of this would be helpful however... if we were snails. Yes it seems for snails mind controlled doom will come not in the form of virus ridden victims with their minds on cannibalistic carnage but rather in the form of a parasitic flatworm (Leucochloridium paradoxum) that only wants some loving.

Paradoxically, the life-cycle of the Leucochloridium paradoxum involves being eaten by two separate hosts: first the Amber snail (Succinea putris), then the Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata).

While still a larva the flatworm finds its way into the gut of the snail where it will develop and make its way into the eye stocks of their host snail. As the tentacles fill they will swell and turn a host of bright colors, mimicking the colors of grubs. While their faces fill with their squishy invaders, their eyes (rather than their brains, which they don't have) loose their ability to detect light.

Terrestrial gastropods are a claustrophilic lot. Since light and open spaces generally lead to desiccation, predation and certain death, they prefer to live in dimly lit areas where they can still see enough to hunt and find food but are safe from the sun. With their ability to detect light hindered they become attracted to brighter light than is normally safe. Come dawn the snails climb away from the safety of the moist shade and towards the canopy where they are likely to be preyed upon by birds such as the Zebra Finch. Which is exactly what the flatworms are counting on.

When the snails and their invaders are eaten by the birds, the flatworms take up residency in their intestines, where they will spend the rest of their lives. While, in the gut of the birds, the flatworms will morph into their adult form. As adults they will reproduce and lay eggs, which will be excreted through the birds droppings. Snails, such as the Amber snails, will in turn eat these dropping, completing the life cycle of the flatworms.

These snail zombies don't ingest brains, spread infection through biting, reanimate after death and don't fit in to many zombie mythologies. It seems brain slugs to me. Still, by no means would I want to be invaded by a creature that wants to take over my eyes and lead me into peril all in the name of getting their rocks off. As cute they are, this is one more reason I'm glad I'm not a snail.

For more information on the perils zombi-fied critters check out this article from http://www.mentalfloss.com
Invasion of the Zombie Animals

Melissa Bruns
Radulove