• Welt@lazysoci.al
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    4 days ago

    If it kills the host, it’s not a very successful parasite, or it’s a parasitoid as only one other commenter has picked up. It’s not in parasites’ interest to kill their hosts, it usually happens when they infect a non-preferred host and the system responds differently, like the pork tapeworm Taenia solium which doesn’t kill pigs but can be lethal in humans.

    • Agent641@lemmy.world
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      4 days ago

      A superior parasite would keep the host alive for hundreds of years past it’s normal lifespan, while ensuring that nothing of the host survives.