Rats: if you can’t beat them eat them! (Tricks of the trade observed among the Adi and other North-East Indian tribals)

摘要

BackgroundSince outside the tribal areas of North-East India it is not widely known, neither in the world nor in India itself, that rats are considered a delicious food item, this was one of several reasons why we decided to present this ethnographic account of rat procurement and preparation (together with some additional comments on the cultural role that rats have especially amongst members of the Adi tribe). Consumption of rats by humans as a biological control method far superior to the use of rodenticide poisoning and rat consumption as a way to reduce hunting pressure on rare wild animals were further considerations to publish this account.