The Valentine Color RED and its strange connection to bugs!
As it turns out the deepest most beautiful colors of red are found in nature, specifically in insects. Once squashed, the tiny South American bug cochineal, pronounced coach-in-EEL, found on the prickly pear cactus, is the number one resource for bright red coloring! For centuries people have been harvesting cochineal and using its gift of red to color everything from king’s shoes and clothing to food and cosmetics.
To learn more about the “Color of Love” use the term “red and cochineal” in the InfoTrac, ProQuest, and Custom Newspapers databases from your State Library http://www.kslc.org to find full-text articles from Boy’s Life, Science News, Spectator (London), and Businessline, just to name a few resources.
