Invasion of the body snatchers

If you think this is a touching photo of a mother protecting her eggs, you’re in for a surprise. These aren’t eggs at all; they’re the cocoons of parasitic wasps that have infested a tailed jay caterpillar (Graphium agamemnon). Some wasps can target hosts much larger than themselves, laying numerous eggs inside a single caterpillar. The larvae feed on the caterpillar’s insides while it’s still alive, eventually emerging to spin their own cocoons from the dead or dying host.