Horsehair Worms
Horsehair Worms live in damp-to-wet habitats from the tropics to the cold-temperate regions. The adults do not eat. Mom lays more than a million (!!!) eggs in a gelatinous string, maybe 8” long. The string breaks down into smaller pieces and disperses. When they hatch, the larvae soon attach to vegetation along the shoreline and form a protective cyst on the plant. Once consumed, the cyst dissolves and Junior burrows into its host and begins dissolving and digesting the nearby tissue.