'Zombie ant' brains left intact by fungal parasite
&gt;&quot;Normally in animals, behavior is controlled by the brain sending signals to the muscles, but our results suggest that the parasite is controlling host behavior peripherally,&quot; Hughes said. &quot;Almost like a puppeteer pulls the strings to make a marionette move, the fungus controls the ant&#x27;s muscles to manipulate the host&#x27;s legs and mandibles.&quot;<p>Probably the most &quot;And I Must Scream&quot; moment in mother nature. Imagine a human gets infected by a parasite that controls their body but leaves their brain intact to observe what their body is doing (and probably drugged to hell as the article implies).