It’s pretty rare, but just like us mammals, some flies actually give live birth. One of them is a parasitic fly species Ormia ochracea (O. ochracea). These parasitic flies latch onto crickets and can use incredibly accurate directional hearing to locate singing crickets. The O. ochracea larvae are then deposited directly onto a host cricket, where the flies burrow inside, and complete their development within the cricket’s body. “This work highlights an extraordinary and underappreciated side of Ormia biology,” said study co-author and St. Olaf College biologist Eric Cole.