Talk:Bloodflies/@comment-29344802-20161118081419/@comment-29344802-20161119091047

Humans are less complex than we'd like to think, and you have to consider that this is a species that has evolved the ability to alter humans drastically. There are plenty of parasites that alter animal behavior (humans included) to use for comparison, so it's not like I'm just grasping at straws.

Did you know that fertility process is controlled almost entirely by hormones? Everything from the time in life at which your body starts menstration to the rate at which a fetal body grows? It wouldn't be a stretch at all for such a heavily brain-altering parasite to alter the speed of reproduction or the age at which it's possible. Sure, there'd be risks (premature birth, almost certainly), but as long as it improves to the overall output of a surviving poplation, it is quite a reasonable risk form an evolutionary standpoint.

By the way, you really did have me thinking much more about the vulnerable stages of a baby's life; almost to the point where I started to reconsider. Then, I came across this: Nest Keepers - These nestkeepers clearly express empathetic tendencies. That reopens the possibility of early care. I would like to say though, that a fetus could easily be altered so that the baby's survival instincts are much stronger and/or altogether alternative in early age. This opens up many possibilities, too.