Popular Knowledge about the Oestroidea

Among the eskimos of the Ahearmiut tribe (Hudson Bay) larvae of Oedemagena tarandi (Linnaeus), subcutaneous parasites of the caribou, are greatly appreciated as food; the hunters bring them to their wives and children as appetizers. Gabus (1956: 280), who lived among the Ahearmiut, reports:

‘With a busy air, Ayutnar carefully extracts round flat larvae from between the skin and flesh of the caribou; these larvae are called ‘kummak’. He offers me some: - No! - They are very good! They taste like milk! - No! - You eat raw caribou; the ‘kummak’ also eat raw caribou… Their flesh is the same! I don’t understand why you don’t want to eat “kummak”!’