If I were you I would let the bugs dry out naturally still intact that’s how they use them. They grind them up when they are ready to use them. Not only that but you lose some of the dye or certain properties. It’s kind of like dried vs freeze dried. And you don’t have to worry about messing up your materials with dye just let the bugs dry out or put them in a dehydrator or sun dry. People take colours for granted. Certain colours back then were luxury. And I wish people paid indigenous peoples homage. These bugs are excellent for dying textiles it’s no joke. Primary colours are the best you can make so much. And some people are trying to say that they “discovered” enough of that… I watched some videos about theses bugs and I just got appropriation vibes…
Does Cochineal harden into the brownish circular scale you see glued to Opuntia? Or is that another scale bug? A friend recently let me take some cuttings and his field had all sorts of pests including white cochineal and scale.. I just wonder if they are the same.
This is great..I just harvested a bunch of this scale today but did not know how to proceed...after creating the liquid extract I am wondering if one could just move onto the dying process without drying into a powder?
@@BetterWorldEcosystems Thank You, for your reply. I will experiment. I have used purchased cochineal before but am excited to use fresh off my friends nopales here in Mexico.
@@susancraik7587 Where do you live? i am trying to find this to harvest, just a bit for a project on these bugs. Could you possible harvest some and send to me, live? I am very interested.
@@kriskelso42 I am half way between Rosarito and Ensenada on the coast. Cochineal shows up regularly on our nopal. I do not have a hydrator which is why I asked about going directly to a dye bath from the liquid. I do cross and can ship stuff out of San Diego but it would probably be some violation of customs...aka smuggling bugs 😂
@@susancraik7587 I got the dried versions no problem I am just interested I. The live ones. My daughter is looking to be a clothes designer and wanted to create a dye using these from start to finish but finding them live has proven difficult.
From Quora: Do cochineals have blood in the same way locusts do? The major difference between insect blood and the blood of vertebrates, including humans, is that vertebrate blood contains red blood cells. Insects and other invertebrates, on the other hand, have what is called hemolympha heterogeneous fluid that courses through their bodies, bathing all the internal tissues. Hemolymph is mostly water, but it also contains ions, carbohydrates, lipids, glycerol, amino acids, hormones, some cells and pigments. The pigments, however, are usually rather bland, and thus insect blood is clear or tinged with yellow or green. (The red color that you see upon squashing a housefly or fruit fly is actually pigment from the insect’s eyes.) In the case of cochineal, there is a particularly bright red coloration in their blood and bodies. The cochineal scale insect (Dactylopius coccus) produces a red pigment called appropriately enough, cochineal. Cochineal scales live on prickly pear, and cover their tiny bodies in a white, fluffy wax to protect themselves from the sun. Why are these little insects so red under all that fluff? Carminic acid (their red dye) repels ants. Thus their pigment evolved as a chemical weapon against predation. The scale insects are collected, dried and crushed, mixed with an acidic alcohol solution and the pigment known as carmine is extracted.
The gloved hand didnt work because they needed something to scrape them off, and the glove was too plasticy and rounded to do that... plus if I pushed to hard I would be pierced by the cactus so spatula was best
Hello, I am trying to learn more about the life cycle of the kermes ilicis or whichever species is referred to "towla" aka the "crimson worm" in the Hebrew bible. There seem to be a lot of Christian sources that propagate a belief about the life cycle, but it's hard to find scientific evidence to back this. Thanks
If I were you I would let the bugs dry out naturally still intact that’s how they use them. They grind them up when they are ready to use them. Not only that but you lose some of the dye or certain properties. It’s kind of like dried vs freeze dried. And you don’t have to worry about messing up your materials with dye just let the bugs dry out or put them in a dehydrator or sun dry. People take colours for granted. Certain colours back then were luxury. And I wish people paid indigenous peoples homage. These bugs are excellent for dying textiles it’s no joke. Primary colours are the best you can make so much. And some people are trying to say that they “discovered” enough of that… I watched some videos about theses bugs and I just got appropriation vibes…
Amazing. I always thought these were a fungus and I would hose them off.
Oh man you coulda been rich
They harm your cactus over time
Maybe use something like parchment paper instead of directly on the plate , I think it'll make your life a lot easier
Does Cochineal harden into the brownish circular scale you see glued to Opuntia? Or is that another scale bug? A friend recently let me take some cuttings and his field had all sorts of pests including white cochineal and scale.. I just wonder if they are the same.
They bring such nice color, I’m curious tho, what does the dye smell like
This is great..I just harvested a bunch of this scale today but did not know how to proceed...after creating the liquid extract I am wondering if one could just move onto the dying process without drying into a powder?
Yes you totally can go straight to dying! Just add some water to the extract as it is extremely concentrated as is
@@BetterWorldEcosystems Thank You, for your reply. I will experiment. I have used purchased cochineal before but am excited to use fresh off my friends nopales here in Mexico.
@@susancraik7587 Where do you live? i am trying to find this to harvest, just a bit for a project on these bugs. Could you possible harvest some and send to me, live? I am very interested.
@@kriskelso42 I am half way between Rosarito and Ensenada on the coast. Cochineal shows up regularly on our nopal. I do not have a hydrator which is why I asked about going directly to a dye bath from the liquid. I do cross and can ship stuff out of San Diego but it would probably be some violation of customs...aka smuggling bugs 😂
@@susancraik7587 I got the dried versions no problem I am just interested I. The live ones. My daughter is looking to be a clothes designer and wanted to create a dye using these from start to finish but finding them live has proven difficult.
Do they have carminic acid throughout their entire bodies? Do they ALSO have regular blood?
From Quora: Do cochineals have blood in the same way locusts do?
The major difference between insect blood and the blood of vertebrates, including humans, is that vertebrate blood contains red blood cells. Insects and other invertebrates, on the other hand, have what is called hemolympha heterogeneous fluid that courses through their bodies, bathing all the internal tissues. Hemolymph is mostly water, but it also contains ions, carbohydrates, lipids, glycerol, amino acids, hormones, some cells and pigments. The pigments, however, are usually rather bland, and thus insect blood is clear or tinged with yellow or green. (The red color that you see upon squashing a housefly or fruit fly is actually pigment from the insect’s eyes.)
In the case of cochineal, there is a particularly bright red coloration in their blood and bodies. The cochineal scale insect (Dactylopius coccus) produces a red pigment called appropriately enough, cochineal. Cochineal scales live on prickly pear, and cover their tiny bodies in a white, fluffy wax to protect themselves from the sun. Why are these little insects so red under all that fluff? Carminic acid (their red dye) repels ants. Thus their pigment evolved as a chemical weapon against predation. The scale insects are collected, dried and crushed, mixed with an acidic alcohol solution and the pigment known as carmine is extracted.
Thank you for posting this!
What a magical substance and color. Adds so much vibrancy to the Buddhist statues in China
I'm not sure about the veracity of that end disclaimer
I have those bugs on my nopals this is so cool
I genuinely don’t care that the red dye comes from bugs lol I’m more fascinated
I really enjoyed this video, thank you! 🪲
Hi, I would like to know where I can get Cochineal bugs? I really want to try it by myself.
they're on prickly pear/nopales, the kind of cactus in the video
(although I think you can buy them online if you don't have a way to harvest them yourself)
So interesting and amazing! Thanks for sharing!
This is very interesting
Very cool.. thankyou for sharing ❤
Interesting.
How can a liquid turn into solid after 20 hours? (4:36)
It's on a shallow plate and it's only a thin layer, so with a dehydrator it dries out really fast
Is that really the best way to harvest it? With a spatula? You started with you gloved hand, did that not work?
The gloved hand didnt work because they needed something to scrape them off, and the glove was too plasticy and rounded to do that... plus if I pushed to hard I would be pierced by the cactus so spatula was best
Carminic acid? It's the bugs blood.
U should have let the bug dried rather than splatter it.🤢
After the dehydration, it looks like Marie "Calender's" pie baked by Sharon. 😅😂
Thank you showing
Gracias
Cool video
4:35 the face of suffering
only the dead know peace from this evil
Fascinating! Thank you!
Great video, but your ending disclaimer is false! From the looks of it, thousands of bugs were harmed in the making of this video.
carmine is quite expensive in europe 1g is 2euros. Precious!
damn maybe i should Harvest mine, theres a Plant covered with these things near my house
Do you sell your dye? ❤
Are the bugs harmless?
No, they stain your clothes
They can completely take over the cacti causing the plant to wither and die over time
Thanks now I enjoy eating bugs
I'm eating red food rn
good, red is good
@@BetterWorldEcosystems 🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢
@@maryamt.6030 you're already eating them, they're in lots of food 😂
This is great. Thank you from Algeria.
Watch out for E120 on ur products cuz this is the code that the product have this stuff in it.
Maybe u can show when it mix with flour
"mix with four"? why?
it can become a solid because of a flour?
They use this in Dole juices.
Just think, they use this in foods such as Tropicana
Hello, I am trying to learn more about the life cycle of the kermes ilicis or whichever species is referred to "towla" aka the "crimson worm" in the Hebrew bible. There seem to be a lot of Christian sources that propagate a belief about the life cycle, but it's hard to find scientific evidence to back this. Thanks
Hey I don't think this would be the same thing, since the cochineal bug is native to the new world
So …..Why not use beets for dye???
Because then I wouldn't be able to make this video
Fun fact : Coca in coca cola comes from Cochineal. U got it?
Are they alive bugs
Not anymore
Disneyland uses the dye in there gummies
Yum yum I love ‘em
Kya aap apna addresh denge
Can make lipstick 💄
Crimson Lake.
Oh god that must hurt
Looks gross 😝 am hearing about McDonald's using in milk shakes for gives color
It is gross 🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢
@@maryamt.6030 no it’s normal
I think corona is not enough for us
Hahaha indeed
yew...orz
yuk
Hi babe
Omg ewww !!!!!!!
Do you eat skittles?