Linnaeus Unchained
09/13/2007 @ 4:00 am
No need to fear dangerous snack foods or Italian motor scooters. According to the photographer, vespa basalis is the black-bellied hornet, a common pest and liquor ingredient in Taiwan. Get stung now or go for the delayed effect. Looks like there might be snakes there too, though…
Photo: Uploaded to Flickr 09/02/07 by Wm Jas. Some rights reserved.
Dr.Paul: if the Taiwanese black-bellied hornet (vespa basalis) is a close relative of the mighty Japanese Giant Hornet (vespa mandarinia japonica), then i would suggest it is quite a worthwhile exercise in capturing a sackful/nestful of the little beggers and liquifying them for tomorrows breakfast alongside your Swiss Muesli.
or you could try the easier way and stock up on some VAAM
“VAAM, short for Vespa Amino Acid Mixture is a new type of Sports & Fitness drink by Meiji Milk Products from Japan, who worked with those responsible for the discovery to bring this commercial drink to the market, incorporating a newly discovered unique balance of 17 amino acids…”
http://www.vaam-power.com/
and it comes with some outstanding accreditations and testimonials as well, most notably being Japan’s darling Olympic Marathon-ette Ms.Naoko Takahashi
http://www.vaam-power.com/vaam_articles.html
what intrigued me most about this was that somebody went to the trouble of researching Hornet Saliva, as they look like rather nasty customers to me…a video follows…
http://hornetpower.wordpress.com/category/japanese-giant-hornet/
yours chrissmassly
remora
December 21st, 2007 at 9:40 amthen there is this product..(Giant Horney Honey)
http://www.edible.com/shop/browse.php?cmd=showproduct&productId=13
which seems to be on the up & up, but the bit about “FARMED BY A SWEET OLD JAPANESE LADY IN KYUSHU ISLAND” sounds a bit dubious to me, not to mention the price (22 quid!) Outrageous!.
(+_+)
rem.
December 22nd, 2007 at 10:26 amon closer inspection of that edible.com website Giant Hornet Horney was listed under the Aphrodisiac section, so not only does this stuff make you run faster and longer but it brings your bonking up to peak performance
*Gosh*
December 22nd, 2007 at 10:35 amthere something more a bit dodgy about that site,accordig to the map in the upper right hand corner - Japan is situated somewhere close to Bali.
December 22nd, 2007 at 11:00 amIt just occurred to me that “snacks” in that sign pictures was probably meant to mean “snakes?” Seems like a pretty dangerous place for a tourist attraction, anyways?
December 22nd, 2007 at 1:00 pmSnacks?..I could make a rather Pie-thonesque comment Dr.Paul, but I don’t think it would Add-er much to the main thread of my interest - which is this lethal stinging beastie..The Japanese Giant Hornet (and this mysterious) “Sweet Old Lady from Kyushu” ??.
*I better research a bit more*
p.s. : you seem to have a knack of starting interesting posts Dr.Paul..(like haiku) all the best for the New Year!.
remora
December 23rd, 2007 at 9:29 ammy!my! the net is a small place isnt it - look what my investigations dredged up ..(this photo chappy OftenOver sounds very familiar! he has been buzzy).
http://www.flickr.com/photos/overoften/2016937023/
*buzz buzz*
rem.
December 23rd, 2007 at 9:56 amThis article seems a bit more creditable that “Horny Honey” malarky (cooking tips and little bit of history).
“The striped o-suzumebachi, or the vespa mandarina, known as the giant hornet, builds hives underground or in tree hollows”.
http://www.asahi.
com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200710230072.html
(Hornet Larvae Tempura sounds yummy.)
“Older larvae, which were almost developed into full hornets, were deep-fried. Sprinkled with a dusting of salt, they were crunchy yet moist inside.
Fifty people turned up to devour the delicacies. The hornet larvae were accompanied by other treats such as wild boar soup and adult hornets stewed tsukudani style in sweetened soy sauce.”
*and this presents a pretty informative overall package about Japans Hornets.*
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-OiEjLC06cKdnDFkHxZ_MRNev
December 23rd, 2007 at 10:14 amA Merry Christmas and Happy & Prosperous New Year to you too, rem. That can’t be TOO interesting though–an old post about bugs? Well, this year will see me move to Asia–I have given notice and sold all my stuff (and boat) so might as well and this will be an interesting year!
December 23rd, 2007 at 11:29 amI focus in on the “seemingly” insignificant and trivial items Dr.Paul, and leave the weightier and more high brow topics to others on Japundit, who are more capable of writing a cogent sentence in English (which i am not)..in other words I work within my limitations..which are considerable.
Now Steve Levenstein over at InventorSpot,reported on rice crackers which are made from Digger Wasps
http://inventorspot.com/articles/wasp_crackers_shunned_kids_loved_6626
now Vespa in Latin, apparently means Wasp not Hornet so that link just kinda scrambles across the “On Topic” line, and it relates to Japan, and probably has been previously posted on this site (hoo-noo?), but anything that hasn’t got a sign or T-Shirt with some mangled English on it rarely grabs my attention…so I think I’m safe.
Also here is a bit of picturesque scenery footage taken from the pillion (i assume) of a souped-up Vespa in Japan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tssn6xfSho
*I have been up that stretch a few times and it never fails to move me with its torpid uniformity*
I’ve got to work thru Xmas/NY…so have a merry time y’all (i’ll be thinkin of you).
rem.
December 24th, 2007 at 9:45 am