PICTURE: Bizarre parasite that replaces tongue of its fish host
This louse found inside the mouth of this fish took over the role of its tongue.
Have you ever heard of something this bizarre?
The species known as the tongue biter or tongue-eating louse is a parasitic isopod of the family Cymothoidae, and normally enters fish through their gills, then attaches itself to the tongue of the fish, where it nourishes itself on the organ's blood vessels and eventually completely replaces the tongue.
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Tongue-eating lice commonly feed on saltwater gamefish. Apart from replacing the tongue for the fish, this parasite actually does not cause the fish any harm at all.
Mondays aren't usually this eventful. I found a tongue-eating isopod (purple) in one of our wrasse scans this morning while digitizing it. These parasites attach themselves to the tongues of fishes and effectively become the new tongue...horrifying #backdatwrasseup pic.twitter.com/axlraUrh8W
— Kory Evans PhD (@Sternarchella) August 10, 2020
Photo credit: Don Marx
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