Can bugs help put a finish on a wood project?

The lac bug, which lives in India and Thailand, secretes a substance that is processed into flakes, added to alcohol, and created as a product you might be familiar with... shellac. If you did not know, shellac is a non-toxic and naturally derived wood finish that was extremely popular before things like polyurethane were created.  

Fun fact - many early records were actually made out of shellac until vinyl became more popular.

Picture courtesy of Wikipedia.

I misinterpreted the subject line when I read it.

Tangentially... my neighbor intentionally leaves dead maples standing for a while before harvesting the wood. Apparently there's something that leaves patterns in the wood that fine woodworkers really like and they will pay more for the wood. I thought he said it was an insect, but I suppose it could be a microbe or mushroom. I can ask if people are interested.

In general, yes, there are lots of naturally produced products that became cheaper and faster to produce with Industrialization. There have often been downsides to this and we are still in danger of loosing some important processes that our ancestors knew. That said, there are many "naturally produced" substances which are deadly, so it's still important to read the fine print!