I ate a bug and I liked it. Taste like a sack of boogers.

Lately there have been a lot of really super awesomely cool articles on bugs in the news over the last month.  And recently there have been a lot of screaming people near me making it seem like the half dead bug dragging its way across the counter is carrying sticks of plutonium on each on of its legs.

Ok, I'll grant you some "bugs" can be a little scary. The reaction to most of the people I know to the video from Australia of a hunts man spider carrying away a mouse was something close to what you would get from watching the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Check out the video if you haven't already seen it.

But some bug news was just sooo cool. Like hello, there are bumble bees in Northern Alaska!! Also because it is that time of year where people pull out their trusty Farmer's Almanac and attempt to predict the coming winter some people decided to try to figure out just how accurate everyone's favorite insect prognosticators are at predicting upcoming winter.

Bugs are cool there are so many reasons to love bugs and heck if all else fails they are tasty. I know I've eaten them....more than once.  We all have....deal with it. While I was working for an entomology museum we were getting ready for out annual bug fair and one of the things you could do is eat a wax worm taco or try some chocolate covered crickets. Fist we had to remove all the wax worms from the dry oatmeal they came packaged in. After a few minutes one of  the graduate student who was helping me started to freak out about having to touch bugs! I looked at her dead in the eye reached into the box and pop a wax worm into my mouth and started to chew.

Wax Worm about 1 inch long. Larval form of a moth.

 Immediately she threw her hand over her mouth and ran away flailing the other hand.  The other graduate student sat there wide eyed and stunned before asking; "what did it taste like?"  I though for a minute and said "tasteless Jello with the consistency of boogers." I dusted off one and handed it to him and after a few minutes of hesitation chomped down on the wiggly bug.  He just shrugged his shoulders and went on sorting.

Many cultures around the globe eat insect as part of the diet, yet here in the United States we get freaked out by the mere thought of knowingly eating a bugs. Sending us into gut wrenching dry heaves.

Whole books have been written about cultures and the uses of insects as food. My favorite bug food book is:

But really what is the big deal? Some spices and a little cheese and it's just like any other protein right? Regardless of if we want to believe it or not there is some bugs or bug parts in just about everything we eat. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) even sets limits on how much unavoidable bug bits can be in our food. It's no big deal most of it is so small and chopped up you can't find it or see it without the aid of a microscope.

Add to your bucket list eat some bugs! Search out some place cooking and serving up some bugs. After all you have been eating spiders in your sleep your whole life with no complaints.



Want to read more:
http://www.livescience.com/51123-gross-things-food-insects-mold-poop.html
http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/ComplianceManuals/CompliancePolicyGuidanceManual/ucm074465.htm
http://www.dietdetective.com/unwelcome-food-additive-2/

Need some recipies?
 https://www.ars.usda.gov/plains-area/sidney-mt/northern-plains-agricultural-research-laboratory/nparl-docs/just-for-kids/bugs-recipes/