Living without eating for years is possible– if you’re a tick, at least!
An East African species of tick, called Argas brumpti, was able to survive for eight years without eating. Julian Shepherd, an associate professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University discovered the insect’s abilities after running out of a food source for the said species. After initially receiving these creatures as a gift in 1976, Shepherd was surprised to find out that they survived for a very long time without eating any food.
The set of ticks he acquired was composed of six adult females, four adult males, and three nymphs of the species. He fed them lab rabbits, mice, and rats until 1984 when the professor decided to stop feeding them due to a lack of source. The male ticks died four years after they weren’t able to eat. The females survived for 8 years and even managed to reproduce asexually, a behavior Shepherd noticed for the very first time. After 45 years of researching and studying the insects’ behaviors, he published his findings in the Journal of Medical Entomology.
Image credit: Jonathan Cohen
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