Invertebrates

8.8. Invertebrates

All of the molluscans listed here except snails are edible. (Escargots are not so popular in Japan.)

For your interest: This is the most popular shellfish in Japan.

For your interest: Corbiculas are small shellfish often used for miso soup.

Note: This word has a different accent from persimmon.

The five words above are all

/ka' i/ "kai" (shellfish).

Japanese has many words for

"musi" (insect) because insect's sound is as evaluated as bird's song. There are not always good English translations.

Note: This word is used only for beetles with a big horn found in forests. It is the combination of

"kabuto" (warrior's helm) and

"musi" (insect). The English word beetle has much wider meaning.

For your interest:

"kabutomusi" and

"kuwagata" are so evaluated as pets in Japan that one beetle can cost 50,000 yen.

For your interest: Cicadas are very common in the summer in Japan. There are many kinds of cicada such as

"aburazemi",

"minminzemi",

"higurasi", and

"tukutukubôsi". Most Japanese people can distinguish them by hearing their sound.

Note: The word

"tyôtyo" also means butterfly. It is better when you want to avoid confusion with the word for intestines.

moth

mosquito