Looseleaf
CLXX. Grasshoppers
"Matt?" Mello padded over to where the redhead was, his wet feet slapping across the grass with squashing noises. "You dragged me all the way here today to swim, and you haven't even changed into your swimming trunks yet."
Matt looked up at him noiselessly before looking back down. "Sorry, I got distracted watching this grasshopper..."
Mello squatted down next to him and followed his line of sight, eyes landing on a green bug perched on the edge of the swimming pool. Before Mello could ask what the hell it was doing, the grasshopper promptly hopped off and landed with a small plop! in the water.
Matt started giggling like crazy as Mello tried to asses the situation. "Mel, just watch," Matt said, eyes twinkling with mirth.
So Mello watched. He eyed the floating carcass of the grasshopper in the water. About five seconds later, he saw something trying to wriggle out from the grasshopper's mouth.
"Ew." Mello made a face. "What is it doing?"
"That's a parasite," Matt explained, pointing at the black worm that was now beginning to emerge from the grasshopper. "It's called a hairworm. Lately, there's been a lot of them around here."
Mello blinked in shock as the worm finally freed itself and swam away.
"Now it's going to breed," Matt continued.
"Oh...okay..." Mello was quite speechless. "Let's never go to a public swimming pool again, okay?" he said after a few moments.
"Agreed," Matt said solemnly. "Besides, we have our bathtub."
"Right you are."
Hairworm: Makes its way into a grasshopper's body before eating all the insides that the insect wouldn't need to live. After that, it somehow induces it to jump into the nearest pool of water, which is almost always a swimming pool.
Yes, this insect does exist. And yes, poor grasshoppers have been committing suicides. D=