"Scott Lurndal" wrote in message
.. .
"Edward Hennessey" writes:



Please short me on the guest list when you have the boys
over for a few of them "bug juices".

You better avoid M&M's then. They're coated with
bug-juice.

scott

SL:

I'm just joshing with Han. The "bug juice" primarily
intended was that mystery concoction poured out
at summer camp.

Is it the cochineal insect (mealy bug) that makes
the red M&Ms special?

There is an "Insect Fair" here every year with an
assortment of edible six-legs on the menu. In
Vietnam there is a tasty moth attracted to the same
campfires which serve as fast-food outlets for the
humans sitting around. Roasted beetles distinctive
for their nutty flavor are a roadside standard in Thailand.
Witchetty grubs are famous native fare in the Australian
interior. Eating bugs is natural. But that thoseWicthetty
grubs look a bit much like Jabba The Hutt wouldn't
help them with Star Wars fans here.

I don't know if the switch to synthetic alternatives
has killed the ambergris market but I do know that if not,
a large lump can be worth well into the six figures no
matter
the original fragrance alerting the beachcomber's
nose.

BTW, the bug responsible for shellac derived the name
"Lac" from the word for "hundred thousand", it taking
300,000
individuals to yield a kilogram of shellac.

Here's a comment on the insect's use of its protective
coating which may have bearing on the hardness discussion:

When it has fixed its position and inserted its probocis
into the trees it secretes a protective coating consisting
of a dark red chitinous scale and a yellow to reddish resin
called the lac resin. The insects mature under the
protective covering of the resin which becomes hard. Wax
glands near the vital pores - the oval region, the breathing
pores and the anal pore keep them open by secreting wax
filaments.

Regards,

Edward Hennessey