Bugs of war

Inevitably, any new science is put to use for offensive ends. Bed bugs, fleas, chiggers, and other nuisance bugs have long had their roles in pestering armies. Today’s soldiers are relatively defended from those ancient scourges of nature, but our warfare is still inspired by the plagues of Egypt. We don’t turn rivers to blood, but we can make them stink. Our dragon flies of war lay their eggs in waters deep or shallow, still or running, and their brood excretes a chemical that has no effect on fish or other creatures in the water, but is bitter and causes nausea in humans who have to wash with it or drink it. It turns out that the breeding success of frogs is related to their food sources. Our larvas of war make sure that frogs are well fed, in spite of being heavily populated. Dip your canteen cup into a stream and it can be swarming with pollywogs. Secondly, we have perfected a parasite like the malaria parasite that affects only frogs. It doesn’t kill them, but it does make them seek out other bodies of water, carrying our nuisance larva with them. You would think that lice were the perfect tormentors of men; however, our lice of war do them one up by making them impervious to all but one means of controlling them. They have built into them a susceptibility to a unique sonic key, out of our range of hearing, that can be changed frequently.
 Similarly, our swarms of war do not bother our own armies, but pester the enemy with zillions of tiny bodies, easily getting into all their food, stored or on their plates. In addition to annoying the enemy, swarms of war also carry a virus that causes boils and sores. In attempt to reduce civilian damages, our locusts of war are particularly attracted to camouflage and to the odors of meals ready to eat.