978-1-4222-3341-2

good substitute for fish and monkey meat. People will often drive hundreds of miles each year to the town of Silveiras, 190 miles (305.78 km) from Sao Paulo, to buy the ants. Those living in the town serve the delicacy with traditional Brazilian dishes. These are no ordinary ants, however. They are a species called içás , which are beefy and can grow up to an inch in length. The içás are very fat and have been known to bite. POISONOUS CONSEQUENCES Pesticides threaten many species of Brazilian ants, including the içás . For the last several years, the ant population has been dwindling as humans use these poisons on eucalyptus trees, which are planted for paper and other products. On the other hand, in the South American country of Colombia, many people are exporting queen ants to France, Britain, and other countries, where diners dip them in chocolate. Most Amerindian cooks still roast meat on wooden skewers and put other dishes in earthen holes lined with leaves. Cooks light a fire over the holes to cook the meal.

Traditional Brazilian churrasco, cooked on spits over an open fire.

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MAJOR NATIONS IN A GLOBAL WORLD: BRAZIL