At the moment the cockroach finishes cleaning its body, the venom of the emerald wasp has completely taken over its will. The cockroach is now extremely docile, following the wasp into a small underground burrow dug by the wasp.
The emerald wasp, scientifically known as Ampulex compressa, is a species of insect belonging to the family Ampulicidae, within the genus Ampulex.
For humans, this species of wasp poses little threat and is not known for being dangerous. However, for cockroaches, the emerald wasp is truly a terrifying nightmare.
For cockroaches, the emerald wasp is truly a terrifying nightmare.
The emerald wasp is precisely a parasitic wasp that uses the bodies of cockroaches to grow and develop.
To achieve this, the emerald wasps approach and capture cockroaches to enslave them.
After subduing a cockroach, the wasp injects venom precisely into specific lymph nodes of the cockroach twice. The initial sting targets a thoracic lymph node, injecting venom to mildly paralyze the front legs of its victim.
This temporary loss of mobility allows the wasp to deliver a second venom injection at a precise location in the cockroach’s head (brain), specifically in the area that controls escape reflexes.
As a result of these two stings, the cockroach initially becomes sluggish, and then it becomes slow and unable to exhibit normal escape responses.
Afterward, the cockroach falls into a half-dazed state, meticulously cleaning its antennae and front legs while the wasp prepares to lay its eggs.
Some experts believe that stimulating the cockroach to groom itself ensures a clean host, free from bacteria, thus minimizing harm to the wasp’s larvae. Others think it is simply a way to keep the cockroach busy and distracted while the wasp “burrows” it alive.
By the time the cockroach finishes cleaning itself, the venom of the emerald wasp has completely dominated its will. The cockroach is now extremely compliant, following the wasp into a small burrow dug by the wasp.
The wasp larva hatches and lives on the cockroach for 4-5 days.
Inside the burrow, the terrifying wasp lays a white egg, approximately 2mm long, on the abdomen of the cockroach. It then exits and seals the entrance of the burrow with pebbles to prevent other predators from stealing the cockroach, not to prevent the cockroach from escaping.
With its escape reflex neutralized, the poor cockroach simply becomes a living corpse, lying in the burrow with the wasp’s egg, which hatches about three days later. The wasp larva hatches and lives on the cockroach for 4-5 days, after which it bites through the cockroach’s abdomen and lives as a parasite inside it.
Over the course of 8 days, the wasp larva consumes the cockroach’s internal organs in a manner that maximizes the likelihood of the cockroach surviving, at least until the larva enters the pupal stage and forms a cocoon inside the cockroach’s body. Ultimately, the adult wasp develops from the cockroach’s body to begin its adult life, completing its horrifying life cycle.
