The Emerald Jewel Wasp performs precise brain surgery on cockroaches to turn them into mindless zombies.

The Emerald Jewel Wasp (Ampulex compressa) uses a highly sophisticated two-step stinging process. The first sting targets the cockroach's thorax to temporarily paralyze the front legs. This allows the wasp to deliver a second, more precise sting directly into the cockroach's sub-esophageal ganglion. This specific area of the brain controls the 'escape response' or the insect's motivation to run from danger.Research conducted by scientists like Frederic Libersat at Ben-Gurion University has shown that the venom contains a cocktail of neurotransmitters. Specifically, it blocks octopamine receptors, which are essential for initiating complex movements like running. Because the venom does not paralyze the legs, the cockroach remains fully capable of walking but lacks the internal drive to do so on its own.Once the cockroach is sedated, the wasp bites off half of the victim's antennae to drink its hemolymph for energy. It then leads the cockroach by the remaining antenna stumps like a dog on a leash toward a pre-dug burrow. The wasp lays a single egg on the cockroach's leg and seals the entrance with debris to protect the larva from predators.The larva eventually hatches and bores into the cockroach's abdomen to feed on its internal organs. To keep the meat fresh for as long as possible, the larva carefully avoids eating vital organs until the very end. This biological process ensures the larva has a high-protein, living meal that lasts for several days before the cockroach finally dies and the wasp emerges as an adult.