Scientific name Ruspolia baileyi Rank Species | Superfamily Tettigonioidea Subfamily Conocephalinae | |
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Similar Ruspolia nitidula, Orthoptera, Gonimbrasia belina, Maguey worm, Omphisa fuscidentalis | ||
Nsenene is the Luganda name for a long-horned grasshopper (more commonly called bush cricket or katydid) that is a central and south-western Ugandan delicacy as well as an important source of income. The insect is also eaten in neighbouring areas of Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania. Traditionally in Uganda, nsenene were collected by children and women. They were given to the women’s husbands in return for a new gomasi (a traditional dress for women). Although the women were made to do the treacherous work of collecting nsenene, they were never allowed to eat them. It was believed that women who consume nsenene would bear children with deformed heads like those of a conocephaline bush cricket. Nowadays, nsenene are consumed by most women in the areas where this insect is traditionally eaten.
