Bioweapon to exterminate the gypsy moths via zombification

[Schadenfroh]

Apparently, they are spraying this virus on trees in an effort to exterminate the gypsy moths. A clever solution! But, a horrible way to go...
http://www.npr.org/2011/09/12/140226986/how-a-clever-virus-kills-a-very-hungry-caterpillar

The problem:

The caterpillar is the gypsy moth in its larval stage, and the invasive species damages roughly a million acres of forest in the U.S. each year by devouring tree leaves.

The solution is a virus turns the caterpillar into a zombie that crawls up to the top of a tree:

Normally, gypsy moth caterpillars feed on tree leaves at night when predators including birds and squirrels can't see them. Then during the day, the caterpillars climb down and hide in the tree bark or even under leaves on the ground.

But caterpillars abandon that sensible strategy when they're infected with a baculovirus

Then, the virus turns the caterpillar into a mass of infectious ooze that rains down upon other caterpillars:

"As they get sick, they climb up to elevated positions and stay there and die," she says. What happens next is pretty gruesome. "The inside of the caterpillar gets pretty much converted to millions and millions of virus particles. Then there are other enzymes that cause the exoskeleton to melt. And that liquefies the caterpillar, and then it can rain virus down on the leaves below."

The caterpillar equivalent of a boomer.

 

[Ruptga]

That is arguably the coolest thing ever.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

Nurgle exists.

All hail his beautiful creations.

 

[ElFenix]

zombie apocalypse in 10...

 

[herm0016]

20 years later: the virus that once helped our forests has now evolved into a virus that will infect humans. symptoms include climbing things for no reason, going to crowded areas and loosing control of your mind. the infected finally degrade into a zombie like state before melting into a pile of infected rotting flesh.

 

[BladeVenom]

I remember hearing about viruses being used against them a long time ago. Is this a new virus?

 

[Malak]

Someone else once tried to exterminate the gypsies... NAZIS!

 

[Schadenfroh]

I remember hearing about viruses being used against them a long time ago. Is this a new virus?

Probably the same virus that you are thinking of, the contribution of the study is that they discovered how the virus alters the behavior of the caterpillar.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Someone else once tried to exterminate the gypsies... NAZIS!

Lol that's the first thing I thought of too when I read the title.