In the world of entertainment, horror web series are widely watched. Most of these are fictional, while some are inspired by true events. But is it possible that something shown in a series or film turns out to be true? Yes, a researcher has found such an animal that has the same infection as shown in HBO’s famous TV series The Last of Us. This researcher claims that he has seen a spider that has been infected by a zombie-like fungus that turns its victims into mummies.
The fungus belongs to the same family as Cordyceps, made famous by HBO’s The Last of Us, and it feasts on trapdoor spiders. The new specimen, called Purpureocilium, infects organisms via spores that land on prey and enter the body.
The fungal tissue gradually takes over the body and grows a purple stalk out of the spider’s head. This happened when this field researcher working in the Peruvian Amazon found a dead tarantula infected with the parasite. Surprisingly, the infection was just as dangerous as described in the series.
“It took over his nervous system and forced him to come to this location and then when he died, the fungus came out of his body, spreading the spores to other unsuspecting tarantulas. It’s really horrifying, but it’s an incredible thing our team found tonight,” wildlife researcher Chris Ketola explained in a video posted on Instagram.