What to eat if you're stuck in the jungle

A man eats a live centipede in Bangkok, Thailand. Picture: AP Source: news.com.au

The Lonely Planet Book of Everything. Picture: Lonely Planet

• Vultures taste terrible
• But termites taste like peanut butter
• And Ant lollipops actually exist

SOME cultures eat insects and small animals as part of their daily diet, and for others they're a delicacy. But what if it was all you could get your hands on?

Let's face it - if you're unlucky enough to get stuck in the jungle or the bush, you'll probably eat anything you can find to stay alive.

So here are some creatures to consider for your next meal if you've run out of normal food, from Lonely Planet's Book of Everything.

Beetle grubs

The white grubs of wood-infesting beetles are perfectly edible if you split their bodies and toast or fry them. You'll find them in decaying or rotten wood.

Birds

All birds are edible, but stay away from those that eat dead animals – vultures and kites – their flesh tastes terrible.

Termites

You'll need to gather a great many of these tiny insects to make a meal. Some say they taste like peanut butter, others liken the taste to 10-day old curdled milk. But they are a good source of protein.

Frogs

Along with the European edible frog (the kind French restaurants use when they serve frogs' legs), there are many other frogs that you can eat. Skin all frogs before you cook them.

Lizards and snakes

For the lizard, the meat from its hindquarters and tail is the best. If you catch a snake, remove the head immediately after killing it (and don't eat this part).

Crickets and grasshoppers

Remove the wings, legs and antennae, then toast them over a fire. You can also eat cicadas, various caterpillars, scorpions and even tarantulas.

Ants

Fry them whole. No shortage here: Harvard biologist and ant expert Edward O Wilson has estimated there are between one thousand trillion to 10 thousand trillion ants crawling around the world at any one time. That's about a million for everyone in the world alive today.

In Thailand and other parts of the world ants are considered a delicacy. And there's a thriving business in ant lollipops if you want to freak out your friends (when you get back from the bush).

This extract is adapted from The Lonely Planet Book of Everything by Nigel Holmes, © Lonely Planet 2012.  In stores now, RRP: $29.99.

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