(ELI5) Why do parasites kill their host in some way if they need a host to live?

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Why not benefit the host instead in some way? Killing the host means the parasite also dies.

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Anonymous 0 Comments

If a parasitic animal (such as a wasp) is adapted to kill its host, it is called a “parasitoid,” the wasp larvae grows to adulthood and survives the death of its host.

True parasites need to reproduce before the host dies to be successful.

When a parasite benefits its host (mycorrhizal fungi for example) then by definition it is not a parasite, it is a commensal or mutualistic partner.

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