Hyperparasite: A parasite whose host is also a parasite

A hyperparasite is a parasite (or parasitoid) which is parasitic on another parasite.

Usually, this means it is parasitic on the larval stage of the victim species.

Hyperparasite: A parasite whose host is also a parasite
A hyperparasitoid chalcid wasp on the cocoons of its host, a braconid wasp. The victim is itself a parasitoid of Lepidoptera
Hyperparasite: A parasite whose host is also a parasite
A hyperparasitic microsporidian, the fungus Nosema podocotyloidis, is a parasite of the trematode Podocotyloides magnatestis. The trematode is itself a parasite of the fish Parapristipoma octolineatum.

Typical examples are members of the Apocrita, and some species in two other insect orders, the Diptera (true flies) and Coleoptera (beetles). Seventeen families in the Hymenoptera and a few species of Diptera and Coleoptera are hyperparasitic.

Primary parasitism in the Hymenoptera evolved in the Jurassic period about 135 million years ago.

In literature

Jonathan Swift refers to hyperparasitism in these lines from his poem
"On Poetry: A Rhapsody":

So nat'ralists observe, a flea
Hath smaller fleas that on him prey;
And these have smaller fleas to bite 'em.
And so proceeds ad infinitum.

Number of levels

Three levels of parasitism have been seen in fungi (a fungus on a fungus on a fungus on a tree).

References

Tags:

LarvaParasiteParasitoid

🔥 Trending searches on Wiki Simple English:

PotatoBlack bassDroupadi MurmuChico fruitLeaning Tower of PisaTescoSilkwormAddressAnimalAnthony DavisThe quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dogSoviet UnionShemaleTom KaulitzTempoEmu WarNoel EdmondsBobby CharltonDance of the Sugar Plum FairyßMary I of EnglandKim Jong-unDeath of Elisa LamSai PallaviTense (grammar)JambulFlea (musician)Jill BidenList of cities and towns in OklahomaBelgradeGolden State WarriorsSellapan RamanathanPolitical parties in the United StatesEnglandSteve IrwinMarilyn ChambersNephew and nieceTNT (American TV network)Godzilla (2014 movie)PrussiaMysore curseMain PageFlorida PanthersDeep-throatingRiver ThamesCape VerdeCasey JohnsonB. R. AmbedkarComputer monitorAutumnWerewolfKiwifruitTwenty-second Amendment to the United States ConstitutionPlanck timeChatGPTRunningAnne HecheFalmer StadiumDrumDavid Kaye (former rabbi)Baskin-RobbinsList of European countriesLaserThompson submachine gunQueen (band)Staple foodBaobabFlags of cities of the United StatesMohs scale of mineral hardnessWest BengalIndiaAbaloneRio (movie)FacebookBreadAthelstanList of presidents of the United States🡆 More