Barbara Hunt

The parasites that these guys carry are called horsehair worms. The worms lay their eggs on plants at the bank of a stream, the potato bug comes along and ingests the eggs along with the leaves. When the worm has grown up in the abdomen of the bug, it signals it to go to water. When the bug reaches water, the worm bursts out of the bug and slithers into the water. Horsehair worms are filter feeders. They root themselves in the mud and filter stuff out of the water to eat. I have seem them a foot long. I did an autopsy on one potato bug and found a worm a foot long all wound up inside the abdomen. Unfortunately, it was dead as well.