Kiss of death

Alison Mitchell

Nature, 1998, vol. 391, issue 6670, 842-842

Abstract: Millipedes evade predators by ejecting a toxic substance from glandular sacs found all over their bodies, except along the first five segments. Yet the larva of the phengodid beetle can evade this defence, and kill the millipede. How? It turns out that the larva grabs the millipede around the neck, injecting a lethal dose of regurgitated gastric fluid. The millipede is paralysed before it has a chance to activate its defences, leaving the larva free to feast in safety.

Date: 1998
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DOI: 10.1038/35990

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