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For centuries, people have consumed bugs, everything from beetles to caterpillars, locusts, grasshoppers, termites, and dragonflies.
幾世紀以來，人類都在食用各種蟲子，從甲蟲到毛毛蟲、蝗蟲、蚱蜢、白蟻再到蜻蜓。
The practice even has a name: entomophagy.
這種用食習慣甚至還有個名字：食蟲性。
Early hunter-gatherers probably learned from animals that foraged for protein-rich insects and followed suit.
早期的狩獵采集者們大概從動物那里學到了怎樣尋找富含高蛋白的蟲子，并且也模仿了起來。
As we evolved and bugs became part of our dietary tradition, they fulfilled the role of both staple food and delicacy.
隨著人類的發展，吃蟲子變成了我們的飲食習慣。因為蟲子既是日?？梢姷臇|西，又很美味。
In ancient Greece, cicadas were considered luxury snacks.
在古希臘，蟬被認為是很奢侈的美味。
And even the Romans found beetle larvae to be scrumptious.
羅馬人甚至發現甲蟲幼蟲十分可口。
Why have we lost our taste for bugs?
而現在，我們為什么喪失了對蟲子的喜愛？
The reason for our rejection is historical, and the story probably begins around 10,000 BC in the Fertile Crescent, a place in the Middle East that was a major birthplace of agriculture.
這是有歷史原因的，大概要追溯到公元前一萬年的肥沃月彎地區，它位于今天的中東地區，是農業的主要發源地。
Back then, our once-nomadic ancestors began to settle in the Crescent.
在那時，我們游牧民族祖先曾經在肥沃月彎地區定居下來。
And as they learned to farm crops and domesticate animals there, attitudes changed, rippling outwards towards Europe and the rest of the Western world.
他們在那里學會了怎樣種植莊稼和怎樣馴化野獸，于是人們換了一種生活方式，并向歐洲拓展，然后傳到了整個西方世界。
As farming took off, people might have spurned bugs as mere pests that destroyed their crops.
當農業發展了起來，人們意識到蟲子只是毀壞莊家的害蟲。
Populations grew, and the West became urbanized, weakening connections with our foraging past.
而當人口增加，西方開始城鎮化發展以后，使得我們與我們的祖先的游牧文化的聯系越來越淡。
People simply forgot their bug-rich history.
人們忘記了食用蟲子的歷史。
Today, for people not accustomed to entomophagy, bugs are just an irritant.
而現在，對于那些不習慣吃蟲子的人，蟲子成了令人討厭的東西。
They sting and bite and infest our food.
它們叮咬人類并且禍害莊稼。
We feel an "ick factor" associated with them and are disgusted by the prospect of cooking insects.
看到蟲子我們覺得“惡心”，并且討厭烹調昆蟲的流行。
Almost 2,000 insect species are turned into food, forming a big part of everyday diets for two billion people around the world.
大約已經有2000種昆蟲被轉化成了食物，對于世界上的二十億人類來說這構成了他們日常飲食的很大一部分。
Countries in the tropics are the keenest consumers, because culturally, it's acceptable.
熱帶國家的人們是最積極蟲子的食用者，因為對于他們的文化來說是可接受的。
Species in those regions are also large, diverse, and tend to congregate in groups or swarms that make them easy to harvest.
那些地區的蟲子個頭很大，多種多樣，并且喜歡聚成一大群，使得他們更容易被捕獲。
Take Cambodia in Southeast Asia where huge tarantulas are gathered, fried, and sold in the marketplace.
就拿東南亞的柬埔寨來說，大量狼蛛聚集在市場上被炸來販賣。
In southern Africa, the juicy mopane worm is a dietary staple, simmered in a spicy sauce or eaten dried and salted.
在非洲南部，多汁的蝴蝶樹蟲是常見的可口食物，用一種辣口的調料來燉或者鹽腌了吃。
And in Mexico, chopped jumiles are toasted with garlic, lemon, and salt.
在墨西哥，剁碎的臭蟲用大蒜，檸檬和鹽來烤著吃。
