Horsehair worms are an entirely parasitic animal phylum. As adults, these worms live in streams, ponds, rivers... your toilet(!), but horsehair worm larvae live inside arthropods. Preferably terrestrial arthropods. Which means for the adults to return to water they have to mind control their hosts back into the water. It can be a gruesome affair. Thankfully, horsehair worms want nothing to do with us!

Scientific Name: Phylum - Nematomorpha
Range: worldwide except Antarctica
Size: an inch (2.54cm) to more than 6.5 feet (2m) in length
Diet: absorb nutrients from arthropod hosts
Lifespan: a few months to a few years

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Image and Video Credits:
Derek Wheaton -    • Horsehair Worm - Phylum Nematomorpha  
Ed Wiebe -    • Mermithidae? Nematode worm. This one'...  
Pier Paolo Puxeddu -    • Video  
JK Trk -    • Húrférgek / Nematomorpha / horsehair ...  
tingkangtingkang -    • 사마귀에서 연가시 나옴  
kepaluri -    • Mantis friend!  


Elizabeth Nicodemus - https://www.flickr.com/photos/ecarey/...
Alastair Rae - https://www.flickr.com/photos/merula/...
Timm Meunier - https://www.flickr.com/photos/auxilia...
Jerry Kirkhart - https://www.flickr.com/photos/jkirkha... https://www.flickr.com/photos/jkirkha...
Don Loarie - https://www.flickr.com/photos/loarie/... https://www.flickr.com/photos/loarie/...
Frost Museum - https://www.flickr.com/photos/9346719... https://www.flickr.com/photos/9346719...
Gilles San Martin - https://www.flickr.com/photos/sanmart...


Bildspende von D. Andreas Schmidt-Rhaesa, Veröffentlichung - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
Marton Zsoldos - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
Esv - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...
Traumrune - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...


Andreas Schmidt-Rhaesa1, Lalramliana - https://zookeys.pensoft.net/articles....
Peter Kuttner - https://vimeo.com/213310271


Research Credits:
https://www.google.com/books/edition/...
https://www.google.com/books/edition/...
https://www.google.com/books/edition/...
https://www.google.com/books/edition/...
https://www.google.com/books/edition/...
https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/...
https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/ef613
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/...
http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/m...