The mad viral clip you’re about to see (if you’re brave enough) is not a new piece of video, but it’s been making the rounds again — racking up almost ten million views since it was first posted to YouTube in 2013 by user baskwith2. That means there are now millions more people out there who are probably undergoing intense therapy, and it’s all this guy’s fault.
Personally, I’ve got a no-kill policy when it comes to arachnid home invaders (unless they can kill me, in which case all bets are off), and since this giant specimen is non-lethal to humans, I would have escorted it outside. But now that I’ve seen what came out of this arachnid’s carcass, I might have to re-think my playbook.
The worm-like creature that bursts forth from the dead spider is a parasitic nematode species known as a mermithid. This slimy organism lays its eggs in water, and when an unfortunate spider (or any other large arthropod) drinks it, the baby worm then begins to grow inside its body, pushing aside most of the host’s internal organs to make room for itself, slowly consuming its host bit by bit. When the host goes to drink again, the mermithid releases its own eggs into the water, and the horrific cycle of death continues. Ain’t nature fun?
