Gall wasps belong to a family of insects that hoodwink oak trees into building a stunning array of structurally unique homes – called "galls" – for their parasitic larvae.
The video is the latest installment in "Deep Look," a collaboration between KQED and PBS Digital Studios:
...each miniature mansion the trees build for the wasps' larvae is weirder and more flamboyant than the next.Inside the gall, the larvae mature and develop... And as they grow they release chemicals that tell the tree how to build the gall. the tree is tricked into funneling nutrients into the gall, to feed the hungry wasp larvae. scientists call this "physiologic sink." For the larvae, it's like living inside a giant banana – an endless supply of food.
H/t IOTBS
Advertisement