Mopane Mopane

The Mopane worms are back! And in full force.

My office was full of them when we came in on Monday. Tiny little worms, inching around the floor of the entire office, hundreds of them. The just crawled under the crack in the door, with thousands more outside on the sidewalk inching around.

The mopane worms come with the rainy season. And this year, there were so many, that as I walked with my umbrella, I could hear them falling from the trees onto my umbrella. What's amazing are the worms look like any other meal worms, 1 inch long, brown, inching around - then they grow into beautiful 4 inch long caterpillars, black body with blue, green, white, spots.

I've just started seeing full grown caterpillars scurrying around on my way to work today. They blend right into the asphalt until you walk up and notice a 4 inch long green thing scurrying by. They can be picked up just as they are and boiled into a stew. They're high in protein and are free!

Most mopane worms end up dried with their innards squeezed out. Then they're rehydrated and cooked in a stew/sauce of tomato, onion, and green peppers. I haven't tried it myself, but may be I will soon. A small handful of dried Mopane worms costs 5P at the store. I'm thinking of sending some home to people.... :)