As the nation prepares for trillions of red-eyed bugs known as periodical to emerge, it害羞草研究所檚 worth noting that they害羞草研究所檙e not just annoying, noisy pests 害羞草研究所� if prepared properly, they can also be tasty to eat.

Blocks away from such French Quarter fine-dining stalwarts as Antoine害羞草研究所檚 and Brennan害羞草研究所檚, the Audubon Insectarium in New Orleans has long served up an array of alternative, insect-based treats at its 害羞草研究所淏ug Appetit害羞草研究所� cafe overlooking the Mississippi River. 害羞草研究所淐innamon Bug Crunch,害羞草研究所� chili-fried waxworms, and crispy, cajun-spiced crickets are among the menu items.

stay buried for years, until they surface and take over a landscape. Depending on the variety, the emergence happens every 13 or 17 years. This year two groups are expected to emerge soon, averaging around 1 million per acre over hundreds of millions of acres across parts of 16 states in the Midwest and South.

They emerge when the ground warms to 64 degrees (17.8 degrees Celsius), which is happening earlier than it used to because of , entomologists said. The bugs are brown at first but darken as they mature.

Recently, Zack Lemann, the Insectarium害羞草研究所檚 curator of animal collections, has been working up cicada dishes that may become part of the menu. He donned a chef害羞草研究所檚 smock this week to show a couple of them off, including a green salad with apple, almonds, blueberry vinaigrette 害羞草研究所� and roasted cicadas. Fried cicada nymphs were dressed on top with a warm mixture of creole mustard and soy sauce.

害羞草研究所淚 do dragonflies in a similar manner,害羞草研究所� Lemann said as he used tweezers to plop nymphs into a container of flour before cooking them in hot oil.

Depending on the type and the way they are prepared, cooked cicadas taste similar to toasted seeds or nuts. The Insectarium isn害羞草研究所檛 the first to promote the idea of eating them. Over the years, they have appeared on a smattering of menus and in cookbooks, including titles like 害羞草研究所淐icada-Licious害羞草研究所� from the University of Maryland in 2004.

害羞草研究所淓very culture has things that they love to eat and, maybe, things that are taboo or things that people just sort of, wrinkle their nose and frown their brow at,害羞草研究所� Lemann said. 害羞草研究所淎nd there害羞草研究所檚 no reason to do that with insects when you look at the nutritional value, their quality on the plate, how they taste, the environmental benefits of harvesting insects instead of dealing with livestock.害羞草研究所�

Lemann has been working to make sure the Bug Appetit cafe has legal clearance to serve wild-caught cicadas while he works on lining up sources for the bugs. He expects this spring害羞草研究所檚 unusual emergence of two huge broods of cicadas to heighten interest in insects in general, and in the Insectarium 害羞草研究所� even though the affected area doesn害羞草研究所檛 include southeast Louisiana.

害羞草研究所淚 can害羞草研究所檛 imagine, given the fact that periodical cicadas are national news, that we won害羞草研究所檛 have guests both local and from outside New Orleans, asking us about that,害羞草研究所� said Lemann. 害羞草研究所淲hich is another reason I hope to have enough to serve it at least a few times to people.害羞草研究所�