ABSTRACT
Humans have had a long and complex history of interaction with insects, but insects have not always been viewed as “pests” requiring control. The inuence of insects on people’s lives is universal and pervasive. Even urbanites who have never seen a cow or chicken have dealt with cockroaches, termites, mosquitoes, or lth ies. Locust plagues are among the oldest recorded natural disasters, with records extending back 3,000 years (Riley 1878, 1883; Ma 1958; Konishi and Itô 1973). Widespread entomophobia (especially among Western societies) testies to the impact of negative associations. However, many insect species have interacted positively with humans. Honey has been a valued food for millennia (Crane 1999), and insects themselves are eaten in many cultures, provide medically or industrially important products, or are important cultural symbols (Clausen 1954).
