Table 1.
Inventory of edible insects used by members of the Wangcho (Wancho) tribe of Eastern Arunachal Pradesh
| Scientific name | Order | Family | English name | Vernacular name | Seasonal availability | Mode of intake | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Chondacris rosea (DeGeer 1773) |
Orthoptera |
Acrididae |
Short horn grasshopper |
Okuk |
Sept- Nov |
Head, appendages and wings are discarded and bodies are roasted |
|
| Unidentified |
Orthoptera |
Acrididae |
Short horn grasshopper |
Okuk |
Sept- Oct |
roasted |
|
|
Brachytrupes sp. |
Orthoptera |
Gryllidae |
Cricket |
Okuk |
May- Sept |
Head, appendages and wings are discarded, bodies are roasted |
|
|
Brachytrupes orientalis (Burmeister 1838) |
Orthoptera |
Gryllidae |
Cricket |
Okuk |
May- Sept |
Head, appendages and wings are discarded, bodies are roasted |
|
|
Aspongopus nepalensis Westwood 1837 |
Hemiptera |
Pentatomidae |
Bug |
Longvia |
Dec- Feb |
Raw paste with chili and ginger |
Sometimes consumption causes psychiatric disorder |
|
Halyomorpha picus (Fabricius 1794) |
Hemiptera |
Pentatomidae |
Bug |
Nyajong waekhoi |
Nov- Feb |
Suck the sting in cold and cough |
Not reported as a normal food item for Wangcho (Wancho) people, but used for therapeutic purposes |
|
Nezara viridula (Linnaeus 1758) |
Hemiptera |
Pentatomidae |
Bug |
Jakwikhoi |
Dec- Feb |
Wings are discarded, roasted |
-- |
|
Rhynchoris humeralis (Thunberg 1783) |
Hemiptera |
Pentatomidae |
Bug |
Viapath |
Jan- Mar |
People use to press the lower portion of the insect to remove the stink gland, wings are discarded and insect is roasted |
The secretion is poisonous for the eye, yellowish in colour and it takes one week to remove it from the hand |
|
Dalader acuticosta (Amyot & Serville 1843) |
Hemiptera |
Pyrrhocoridae |
Bug |
Waekhoi |
Dec- Feb |
Suck the sting in cold and cough |
Not reported as a normal food item for Wangcho (Wancho) people, but used for therapeutic purposes |
|
Mictis tenebrosa (Fabricius 1787) |
Hemiptera |
Pyrrhocoridae |
Bug |
Waekhoi |
April- Aug |
Suck the sting in cold and cough |
Not reported as a normal food item for Wangcho (Wancho) people, but used for therapeutic purposes |
|
Antilochus coqueberti (Fabricius 1803) |
Hemiptera |
Pyrrhocoridae |
Bug |
Wanwikhoi/ Wanchong |
Around the year |
Raw or roasted |
Species is used only for therapeutic purposes |
|
Dorcus sp. |
Coleoptera |
Lucanidae |
Stag beetle |
Mogap magai |
Aug- Oct |
Appendages discarded, roasted |
|
| Unidentified |
Coleoptera |
Lucanidae |
Stag beetle |
Mogap magai |
Jul- Sept |
Appendages discarded, roasted |
|
| Unidentified small species |
Coleoptera |
|
|
Mophong molong/ Notphong |
June - Sept |
Boiled or roasted |
|
|
Apis mellifera Linnaeus 1758 |
Hymenoptera |
Apidae |
Honeybee |
Nakat |
Nov- Jan |
Honey and sometimes larvae, pupae and queen boiled |
|
|
Apis sp. |
Hymenoptera |
Apidae |
Honeybee |
Nakat |
Nov –Jan |
Honey and sometimes larvae, pupae and queen boiled |
|
|
Xylocopa sp |
Hymenoptera |
Xylocopidae |
Bee |
Nakat |
Nov- Mar |
|
|
| Unidentified |
Hymenoptera |
Vespidae |
Wasp |
Nahtam |
Nov- Jan |
Immature stages raw or roasted nymph and queen boiled |
|
| Unidentified |
Hymenoptera |
Vespidae |
Wasp |
Thokananu |
Oct- Dec |
Larvae |
|
| Oecophylla smaragdina Fabricius 1775 | Hymenoptera | Formicidae | Red ant | Thajao | Round the year | Pupae are consumed |