AHA38: Bone-Hating Worms

Location: Mississippi River Basin water bodies.

Status: Active.

Description and Behavior: Bone-Hating Worms are an anomalous species of parasitic worms that inhabit some of the waterways of the Mississippi River Basin. They usually appear as small, thin black worms about one to two inches (2.5-5.1 cm) long. When an animal or human pass by them in the water, the worms will burrow into the skin of the victim, often looking like ingrown hairs. Once in their victim, the worms will start laying eggs and reproducing additional worms that will line the entire interior of the skin within a five-hour period. This rapid maturation and reproduction enables the worms to quickly integrate themselves in muscle tissue and wrap around the bones of the victim within two hours after lining the interior of the skin. Once this is achieved, the worms will instigate the evacuation of any and all bones in the body.

The Bone-Hating Worms remove bones from the body by instigating violent muscle spasms as well as using their bodies to move tissue out of the way. Bones are forced through a number of cuts made throughout the skin; these cuts are them resealed by the worms once the task is finished. Curiously, very little tissue damage or blood loss occurs in this process. As soon as all the bones are removed, the worms will paralyze the now flaccid victim and accelerate their reproduction. The worms sustain themselves on the tissue of the still living victim for anywhere from one to three weeks. Eventually the Bone-Hating Worms will start collectively moving the victim to the nearest body of water. Once in the water, they will exit the body into the water to restart the process all over again. The most common cause of death for victims of Bone-Hating Worms is drowning.

Recommended Actions: The recommendation when it come to Bone-Hating Worms is to avoid any bodies of water they are known to inhabit. If you or someone you know enters a body of water and develops these worms, immediately go to the doctor. If the body of water is one not recorded to have had occurrences of these worms before, report it to the appropriate authorities so that the proper preventative measures may be implemented.