Can someone help me identify this bug?

Question

I can't remember the name, but all I remember from watching a TV show (NatGeo, I think) is this:

This bug incubates her eggs inside herself, and while inside, the male baby bugs hatch and impregnate their sisters inside the female bug. And then everyone feed on Mom and bursts out.

Am I imagining things or does a bug like this really exist? I'm pretty sure that's what the documentary said.

Answer 1

Essentially, aphids are mostly asexual, the female can be pregnant with a female that is also pregnant.

Some aphid species have unusual and complex reproductive adaptations, while others have fairly simple reproduction. Adaptations include having both sexual and asexual reproduction, creation of eggs or live nymphs and switches between woody and herbaceous types of host plant at different times of the year.

Many aphids undergo cyclical parthenogenesis. In the spring and summer, mostly or only females are present in the population. The overwintering eggs that hatch in the spring result in females, called fundatrices. Reproduction is typically parthenogenetic and viviparous. Females undergo a modified meiosis that results in eggs that are genetically identical to their mother (parthenogenetic). The embryos develop within the mothers' ovarioles, which then give live birth to first instar female nymphs (viviparous). The offspring resemble their parent in every way except size, and are called virginoparae.

This process iterates throughout the summer, producing multiple generations that typically live 20 to 40 days. Thus one female hatched in spring may produce many billions of descendants. For example, some species of cabbage aphids (like Brevicoryne brassicae) can produce up to 41 generations of females, or more than 1.5 x 1027 offspring if they all live.

In autumn, aphids undergo sexual, oviparous reproduction. A change in photoperiod and temperature, or perhaps a lower food quantity or quality, causes females to parthenogenetically produce sexual females and males. The males are genetically identical to their mothers except that they have one less s*x chromosome. These sexual aphids may lack wings or even mouthparts. Sexual females and males mate, and females lay eggs that develop outside the mother. The eggs endure the winter and emerge as winged or wingless females the following spring. This is, for example, the life cycle of the rose aphid (Aphis rosae), which may be considered typical of the family. However in warm environments, such as a in the tropics or in a glasshouse or greenhouse, aphids may go on reproducing asexually for many years.

Some species produce winged females in the summer, sometimes in response to low food quality or quantity. The winged females migrate to start new colonies on a new plant, often of quite a different kind. For example, the apple aphid (Aphis mali), after producing many generations of apterous females on its typical food-plant, gives rise to winged forms which fly away and settle on grass or corn-stalks.

Some aphids have telescoping generations. That is, the parthenogenetic, viviparous female has a daughter within her, who is already parthenogenetically producing her own daughter. Thus a female's diet can effect the body size and birth rate of more than one generation (daughters and granddaughters).

Answer 2

It sounds like the tribbles from Star Trek.