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Tongue-Eating Louse

An Anemone fish in Bunaken
atese/Getty Images/iStockphoto
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iStockphoto
An Anemone fish in Bunaken

Chances are you’ve heard the saying, “Cat got your tongue?, referring to someone who’s at a loss for words.

But in this extraordinary instance, that saying hits pretty close to home for some unfortunate fish.

Looking much like a roly-poly, a unique species of marine isopod is known to parasitize eight species of fish. And while it is not uncommon for fish to have parasites, this species is the only known pest to replace a host’s organ.

Which organ, you might ask? We present, the tongue-eating louse.

Incredibly, all of the juvenile lice begin life as males. After entering the fish through the gills, that’s as far as they go, making these respiratory organs home.

But this is where things really get interesting.

When two or more males mature, the competition causes a remarkable transformation …one of the males will change sexes, turning into a female. If you’ve been wondering how the tongue comes into play in this story, only the female lice go for the tongue.

Making her way from the gills, the newly female louse will grasp the tongue with her hind legs, sever the blood vessels in the fish's tongue, and begin to feed. Over time, the loss of blood causes the organ to slowly wither until it eventually falls off. Secured to the stub that remains, she effectively replaces the unfortunate fish’s entire tongue for the rest of her life.

Surprisingly this does not kill the fish, although some studies have shown that fish affected by the tongue-eating louse can be a bit underweight.

So, the next time someone asks you, “Cat got your tongue,” you’re now armed with a more scientifically plausible response.

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