Speaking of "buffalo", you may think that it is the buffalo in the rice fields in the south, but it is not. "Buffalo" is a local insect in our country. It is black all over, with two long horns on its head and two big teeth on the front. Because it always turns into adults and comes out after the rain around the beginning of autumn, it is commonly known as "buffalo". In fact, its scientific name is "Big-tooth longhorned beetle".
When I was a kid, we looked forward to rain around the beginning of autumn. It was best to have heavy rain for a period of time and then light rain, so we gathered our friends and each took a small bucket and filled it with decorations. water, and then set out to catch "buffalo" in the wild.
Peanut fields and roadside turf are the favorite places for "buffalo". At this time, under the water of the rain, the "buffalo" can easily come out of the hole, and you can see the "buffalo" flying here and there from a distance. This is the happiest time.
These flying "buffalo" are usually male buffalo. We folded a small branch and used it as a tool. We shouted together and ran after the "buffalo". After catching up, we knocked the "buffalo" to the ground with the branch, and then hurried to catch the "buffalo" on the ground, because the "buffalo" Once it lands, it will hide quickly, and it will also climb very quickly on the ground.
The two big teeth of "Buffalo" are also very powerful. When catching it, you need certain skills, otherwise it will be bitten by its big teeth. Generally, you first hold its neck with your hands, so that the big teeth It won't bite you. Then he picked him up and threw him into the bucket. Because there was water in the bucket, he couldn't fly and could only stay in the bucket.
Sometimes hundreds of them can be caught in a morning, and the friends will get together and find the biggest one they have caught to compete with each other, which will also make the "buffalo" bite each other. A fight is somewhat similar to a fight between crickets. After playing enough, we happily go home together, remove the buffalo wings, fry them, and sprinkle with fine salt. It becomes one of the rare delicious meals when we were children, and it is also a way for the whole family to improve their lives.
In fact, the normal life span of a buffalo is very short, maybe only a few hours. As soon as the sun comes out, it will die. After the male buffalo comes out of the hole, it flies around quickly in search of the female buffalo. The female buffalo will lay her eggs in the soil and then die quietly.
Buffalo eggs will turn into yellow bugs in the soil. They are all yellow. We call them "rehmannia glutinosa" locally. When farming, we often find ground yellow bugs in the soil.
Buffaloes are not found everywhere. I once asked our classmates and friends in neighboring towns, and they did not know that this insect existed at all, and they had no experience of catching buffaloes. I think I am luckier than them. My childhood not only had one more kind of delicious food, but also one more kind of beautiful memory.
I rarely go back to my hometown in recent years. According to my father, buffaloes are almost impossible to see anymore. Due to the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, Rehmannia glutinosa has no living environment, so we can no longer see them flying all over the sky. The dancing buffaloes are gone, and those young boys running happily in the open fields in the drizzle can no longer be seen.
The survival of buffalo is also the result of environmental changes. Insects can lose their living environment, but one day, will we humans also lose our living environment? Will wandering the earth really become a reality?
It’s time for the earth to need our protection. Protecting the earth starts with protecting our childhood memories!
The buffalo has remained in my memory. I wonder if I will have the chance to catch a buffalo again. Just talking to a friend today reminded me of it again. Maybe no one will remember them after many years, so I will record this memory and collect some pictures online. Buffaloes are hard to see in real life, and pictures of them are hard to find online. This article hopes to leave some good memories for friends who have caught buffalo.