Ewwwww!!!! Grossest closeup shot ever!

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Sun Sep 13, 2009 10:34 am

The shot is here:

http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/uplo ... sopod.jpeg

For the explanation, check these articles out:

Better explanation here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/jersey/8246001.stm

A more "horror movie" description of events here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/engl ... 205538.stm

Planapo · Post by **Planapo** » Sun Sep 13, 2009 12:36 pm

You may find this parasite "gross", but it's marvelous adaptation, isn't it?!

Thanks for linking to it, Mike!

--Betty

rjlittlefield · Post by **rjlittlefield** » Sun Sep 13, 2009 1:08 pm

Fascinating creature!

Not wishing to disagree with Mike, but this is waaaaay short of being the grossest macro I've ever seen. Of course I used to hang out with medical guys. Some of the documentation shots they deem worthy of bulletin board display would.....no, some topics are better left alone.

--Rik

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Sun Sep 13, 2009 6:55 pm

rjlittlefield wrote:Fascinating creature!

Not wishing to disagree with Mike, but this is waaaaay short of being the grossest macro I've ever seen.

In truth, I guess it is the concept and the little guy's life history that I find so creep-inducing! The shot is just a little "bug" sitting in a fish's mouth. The vaguely smiley-faced head doesn't help. The idea that the creature is replacing the tongue, and feeding on the fish's blood, and always being there while the fish goes on about its life is just one that gives me the heebie-jeebies....*shudder* And I won't even talk about finding one in my dinner!

rjlittlefield · Post by **rjlittlefield** » Sun Sep 13, 2009 7:15 pm

Hmm, there's an opportunity here...

How do you feel about tapeworms?

Wikipedia says that "Taenia saginata, the beef tapeworm, can grow up to 40 feet long. ... The adult taenia saginata, for example lives in the gut of a primate such as a human."

Heh heh heh...

--Rik

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Tue Sep 15, 2009 3:44 pm

rjlittlefield wrote:
How do you feel about tapeworms?

Actually, tapeworms don't bother me much.....Probably mainly because I've known about 'em for decades and had time to get used to the idea. Years ago, I read a memoir of a parasitologist physician that fascinated me, and included a description of a middle-aged millionaire in his luxury Park Avenue apartment passing a big long tapeworm out of his rectum (under the physician's supervision of course) while his sweet-young thing girlfriend looked on in disgust, and after that I probably will never be shook up about tapeworms again!

The image that really struck me from the book was a description of the life cycle of hookworms....They REALLY move around in the body, and some awful things can happen when they get lost and end up trying to live in the wrong part of the body. Now that I am thinking about this, I'm gonna see if I still have my copy of that book, which I highly recommend:

http://www.amazon.com/M-D-Doctors-Adven ... 049&sr=1-1

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Tue Sep 15, 2009 6:08 pm

That is way too cool!

ChrisR · Post by **ChrisR** » Wed Sep 16, 2009 12:48 am

Check out schistosomiasis, and onchocerciasis.

Jim McLeod · Post by **Jim McLeod** » Wed Sep 16, 2009 5:22 am

Mike

Since your a neighbor, Amazon, now has one less in stock

Thanks, I live in a relatively small town, I don't get to browse for weird

books.