Practice question

Nematomorpha called horsehair worms or Gordian worms due to extremely long thin hair-like appearance reminiscent of horse tail hairs and tangled knots during mating, are nematode-like parasites closely related to nematodes. Adults free-living non-feeding in freshwater or damp soil, relying on stored reserves. Eggs hatch minute gordioid larvae equipped with eversible proboscis bearing hooks and stylets for host penetration. Larvae first encyst in aquatic paratenic hosts like insect larvae or crustaceans, then transferred to definitive terrestrial hosts including crickets, mantids, beetles where they grow in haemocoel absorbing nutrients via tegument, manipulating host behavior to seek water for emergence.