Strange “Worm Towers” Found in the Wild for the First Time May Be Hitchhiking on Beetles

A newly identified nematode species may have entered Europe by hitchhiking on invasive beetles, revealing an unexpected ecological partnership hidden inside rotting fruit. In 2025, researchers in Konstanz studying rotting fruit in local orchards spotted a behavior never before documented in nature. Hundreds of worms were seen stretching upward together into writhing structures called “towers.” [...]