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Comadia redtenbacheri (Lepidoptera: Cossidae) and Aegiale hesperiaris (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae), two important edible insects of Agave salmiana (Asparagales: Asparagaceae): a review

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Abstract

This review focuses on the characteristics of the life-cycle, and the nutritional properties, preservation, and marketing of Comadia redtenbacheri (Hammerschmidt) (red agave worm) and Aegiale hesperiaris (Walker) (white maguey worm) as alimentary options with nutritional benefits for humans. These insects are widely consumed in Mexico, the highest-ranking country worldwide in terms of insect diversity, and a place where entomophagy has been practiced for thousands of years, with the red and white maguey worms standing out as two insect pests of the Agave salmiana Otto ex Salm-Dyck. These insects are consumed in their larval stage in various culinary dishes by local people and foreign tourists due to their exquisite, exotic flavor, high protein and fat content, easy digestion, and high content of essential minerals for food metabolism. These properties make them a food source that offers consumers significant health benefits, but their production is seasonal and knowledge of their life-cycle scarce, so production under greenhouse conditions is unfeasible to date, though studies are ongoing to generate mass reproduction strategies under sustainable greenhouse conditions that would promote the incorporation of these insects into functional foods. For maguey worms to become a viable food option, consumers must be informed of the benefits of adding them to their diet and learn how best to integrate them into their foods. Legislation is also required to regulate their production, consumption, and health benefits.

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Acknowledgments

We thank María del Carmen Ávila Ramírez, M.Sc., for her work on the physiology of Comadia redtenbacheri, and Carmelita Ramos Tecolmalman (from Tlachiquera del Tinacal los Tuzos, municipality of Singuilucan, Hidalgo) for sharing their experiences and taking samples and photos of C. redtenbacheri and A. hesperiaris for the elaboration of this review. We also thank Mexico’s Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) for the scholarship awarded to the student Aracely Molina Vega (No.858301) to support her M.Sc. studies in Biotechnology at the Universidad Politecnica de Pachuca.

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  1. Maestría en Biotecnología, Universidad Politécnica de Pachuca, Carretera Pachuca-Cd. Sahagún km 20, Ex Hacienda de Santa Bárbara, CP-43830, Zempoala, Hidalgo, Mexico

    Aracely Molina-Vega

  2. Cuerpo Académico Manejo de Sistemas Agrobiotecnológicos Sustentables, Universidad Politécnica de Pachuca, Carretera Pachuca-Cd. Sahagún km 20, Ex Hacienda de Santa Bárbara, CP-43830, Zempoala, Hidalgo, Mexico

    Edna María Hernández-Domínguez, Matilde Villa-García & Jorge Álvarez-Cervantes

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  1. Aracely Molina-Vega
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  2. Edna María Hernández-Domínguez
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  3. Matilde Villa-García
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Correspondence to Jorge Álvarez-Cervantes.

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Molina-Vega, A., Hernández-Domínguez, E.M., Villa-García, M. et al. Comadia redtenbacheri (Lepidoptera: Cossidae) and Aegiale hesperiaris (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae), two important edible insects of Agave salmiana (Asparagales: Asparagaceae): a review. Int J Trop Insect Sci 41, 1977–1988 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-020-00396-1

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