Copidosoma floridanum
The parasitoid wasp Copidosoma floridanum has been closely studied by entomologists for its extreme proliferation at the embryonic stage, with as many as 3,000 larvae emerging from a single egg. Some of those larvae develop into “soldiers,” and a new study shows more will do so in response to competition from other parasitoids in the same host but not to environmental conditions such as heat shock or bacterial infection. (Photo credit: John Rosenfeld, Bugguide.net)