Parasite turns shrimp into voracious cannibals

Parasites can play an important role in driving cannibalism, according to a new research which looked at cannibalism among freshwater shrimp in Northern Ireland. Researchers from the University of Leeds, Queen’s University Belfast and Stellenbosch University in South Africa found a tiny parasite, Pleistophora mulleri, not only significantly increased cannibalism among the indigenous shrimp Gammarus duebeni celticus but made infected shrimp more voracious, taking much less time to consume...

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