Insect Appreciation with the 4H Club

Friday was a national holiday in Korea. It is a celebration of the Korean language, called Hangul Day. As such, it was another long weekend free of work responsibilities but I was invited to join the 4H club at the school for an activity. I'm not usually one to give up my day-off, but this sounded interesting even though the details weren't explained to me clearly. All I knew was that I needed to be at the school at 10am and that they had invited a local farmer; a farmer of insects.

Upon entering the room, I saw that on each desk was a series of creepy crawlers in baggies and other equipment. I was intrigued, but a little grossed out.

The insect farmer has some renown in the area. He gave an interesting presentation on his bugs (in Korean) and showed a news report where he was interviewed demonstrating his farming practice.

I got the gist of it from the video and pictures, and some of the teachers translated for me. But what the video and presentation did not prepare me for was that these bugs were not simply educational, they were on the menu.

When in Rome... eat what the Romans eat. Many of the students, especially the boys really tucked in and munched on the bugs, even the live ones. I decided to try some of the dried out and salted mealworms. Not that I really wanted to but I felt the peer pressure rising. 

At first, the mealworm didn't have much of a taste. It was crunchy and dry. Then the taste hits you. It tasted like a foot and a piece of mealworm got caught in my teeth. 

After our light snack, it was time to start on our project. The farmer had brought some exotic bug specimens, which at first I thought were plastic models, but were real dead insects. I received a beetle from Indonesia. We were meant to manipulate the bug's legs and appendages so it could be splayed out in a display case.

Of course, the insects suffered from rigor mortis so we placed their stiff bodies into warm water for several minutes. This loosened up the limbs so we could get to work. A worry in the back of my mind was that these bugs would come back to life and scurry across the room.

We pulled and stretched out the limbs and antennae, holding them in place with pins. Eventually, the insects were fully spread out and secured. We were instructed to leave the bugs in this position for one week while they dried. Once dried, the insect could be moved to the plastic case and displayed in our home.

I wasn't exactly crazy about bringing this bug home, even though it was surely dead. I have enough bugs living in my apartment as it is. At least it will serve as a warning to other bugs not to mess with me.

But that wasn't the only parting gift we received from the session. I took home my very own baggie of mealworms to snack on and some bug juice. I was told that it's mixed with ginseng and cinnamon. I have a feeling that the juice will be sitting in my fridge for a long time.

As always, the highlight of the activity was spending time with my wonderful students away from class.