Creepy Living Hair Worm Found On Lake Huron Dock in Michigan

Nearly everyone who has seen this video posted on Facebook recently just gets a little unnerved. For many upon seeing it, the video gives a distinct visceral reaction.

The video portends to be taken on a dock along the shores of Lake Huron in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

We are on Lake Huron in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and found these little hair-like, snake-like creatures without heads that are wiggling in the water. Does anybody have any idea what they are?

Check out the video for 17 seconds of what appears to be something about the size of a long human hair squiggling around on the dock.

So what is it? Given the power of the internet, the question was quickly solved.

It’s called a Gordian Knot worm or a horse hair worm. It lives in the water and it grows as a parasite inside of insects like crickets and grasshoppers. And then it ends up in the water and we’re watching them swim in Lake Huron. It is harmless. I have lived in Michigan my whole life and never heard of anything like this before

The worms can grow to at long as 2 feet. They do squiggle into twists and knots. They are parasitic and can take over creatures like crickets. There are, however, 2 known cases of humans being invaded by these worms. The National Institute of Health shares a report from the Korean Journal of Parasitology (you probably just let your subscription lapse) of one elderly people and an infant from Japan who were infected by horsehair worms.

The woman vomited a worm after gargling with a saline solution as she felt something was caught in her throat while she was lying in bed. The worm was preserved in 10% formalin before examination. She had eaten vegetables harvested from a private garden. The other worm from the mouth of a boy was removed by his mother.

So, do watch the worms should you see the little squiggly hair worms.