Body snatching spores: the horror story beneath your feet

Just beneath the soil, a horror story is unfolding that would rival the most gruesome slash and gore pic. Spores that have burrowed into young cicadas during their long hibernation are beginning to take over control of their bodies. These are cordyceps, and they're all around us. To find out more about this fascinating, deadly fungus I spoke with Dr Peter Buchanan, who's a team leader at Landcare Research. I asked about recent reports of lots of cicadas sprouting cordyceps in the Wellington region.