Insect Festival included grasshopper tacos

OXNARD, Calif.-Oxnard's Insect Festival in Plaza Park on Saturday gave bug lovers a chance to look at them, buy them and even eat them.

Food trucks on hand served grasshoppers or chapulines in a number of dishes.

Anahi Quiroz happened upon the festival and gave insect tacos a try.

"Oh, it's crispy. It has a lot of flavor. It's like they put chile secos and lemon," said Quiroz.

She even shared hers with a Chef Luiz Mendez who was working at his mother's La Chapparita Mexican Food truck.

"Very crunchy, a lot of flavor. I can feel the legs," said Mendez.

Children had big bug eyes just looking at the insects, chameleons and snakes on display.

They also learned a thing or two.

Nayeli Martinez of the Reptile Factory showed them live silk works.

"About 10,000 can make a whole like shirt, basically. Tthey spin silk and it takes 10,000 of these guys to even produce enough silk to make a shirt," said Martinez.

The Santa Barbara Zoo showed off all kinds of bugs that were no longer crawling around.

Oxnard High School's Yellowjacket mascot invited everyone to pledge to protect pollinators.

Other insect impersonators made the rounds for photo opportunities with Mayor John Zaragoza and others.

Miss Mantis Diana Reyes said, "Every year we have this insect festival. It's an amazing place to visit! Welcome to Oxnard!"

Families dressed up as insects, too.

If you missed it, it will crawl back around next year.