The crew of the Dutch ship Gelderland used the names “griff-eendt” and “kermisgans” for the dodo in 1598, in reference to fowl fattened for the Kermesse festival

The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius. Kermesse, or kermis, or kirmess, is a Dutch language term derived from ‘kerk’ (church) and ‘mis’ (mass) that became…

Kermes is a red dye

Kermes is a red dye derived from the dried bodies of the females of a scale insect in the genus Kermes, primarily Kermes vermilioThe Kermes insects are native in the Mediterranean region and are parasites living…

Kermes is a genus of scale insects in the order Hemiptera

There are some 20 species,[3] including: References External links

Rosolio (from around the internets)

Rosolio is a type of Italian liqueur made from a base of alcohol, sugar, and water in the same proportion, which is flavored by adding an essence of any of various types. Despite a…

Cochineal Etymology

cochineal (n.) “brilliant crimson dyestuff consisting of the dried bodies of a species of insect,” 1580s, from French cochenille (16c.), probably from Spanish cochinilla, from a diminutive of Latin coccinus (adj.) “scarlet-colored,” from coccum “berry (actually an insect)…

Surfeit

surfeit (n.) early 14c., “excess quantity;” late 14c., “overindulgence,” from Old French sorfet “excess; arrogance” (Modern French surfait), noun use of past participle of surfaire “overdo,” from sur- “over” (see sur- (1)) + faire “do,” from Latin facere “to make, do” (from PIE root *dhe- “to…

Surfeit human gene cluster

Surfeit is a human gene cluster that consists of a group of very tightly linked genes on chromosome 9 that do not share sequence similarity. Genes in this cluster are numbered 1 through 6: SURF1, SURF2, SURF3, SURF4, SURF5, and SURF6.…