Trivia question for Feb-20-2011

As we had mentioned once before, Carter is not much of a bug person but I have to give him credit for continuing to learn about them.  Today’s trivia is complements of Carter.  This insect has a unique ability to regulate its body temperature.  The desert variety are also among the few insects known to cool themselves by sweating, while many other types can voluntarily raise their body temperatures as much as 40 °F above ambient temperature.

Some of these insects produce sounds up to 120 dB “at close range”, among the loudest of all insect-produced sounds. Their song is technically loud enough to cause permanent hearing loss in humans if they landed on your shoulder. Conversely, some small species have songs so high in pitch that the noise is inaudible to humans.

Because of their size, these guys are often eaten by humans and are even considered a delicacy in China, Malaysia, Burma, Latin America, Germany, the Congo and in the United States.  So here are Carter’s questions:  Tell us at least one way these attractive bugs are prepared for human consumption, and also tell us at least two names these insects go by.

Good Luck 😉

Answer:

Congratulations to Valerie for being the first with the correct answer and for suggesting we try eating these guys dipped in chocolate (I think I’ll pass thank you).   The insect we featured is the Cicada.   There are about 2,500 species of cicada around the world, and many remain unclassified. Cicadas are often colloquially called locusts, although they are unrelated to true locusts, which are a kind of grasshopper.   They are also known as “jar flies” and, regionally, as July flies in the Southeastern United States, and as “heat bugs” in Canada and the mid-West. Cicadas are related to leafhoppers and spittlebugs.   In parts of the southern Appalachian Mountains in the United States, they are known as “dry flies” because of the dry shell that they leave behind.

Cicadas have been eaten in China, Malaysia, Burma, Latin America, Germany, the Congo and in the United States. In North China, cicadas are skewered, deep fried or stir fried as a delicacy.  And according to some folks here in the USA, these guys are even dipped in chocolate before being enjoyed.

Cicadas are benign to humans in normal circumstances and do not bite or sting in a true sense, but may in fact sting after mistaking a person’s arm or other part of their body as a tree or plant limb and attempt to feed (if you were to stay still long enough).

Here is more on these loud and apparently delicious insects: Cicada

Thanks for playing along 😉