Creechie Bug: Rove Beetle from Cameroon

danielj

January 2nd, 2008 at 1:00 am

Categories

Rove Beetle
Dear Bugman,
Just wanted to send in a picture of a Paederus Rove Beetle. We are missionaries living in Cameroon West Africa and these little critters attack us at the end of every rainy season. I also included a picture of the burn that these guys can inflict on someone, usually while they sleep. We have been so curious about them since our move here four years ago. We have done much research to find out what they are, but the only name we had for them was what the local people called them – the creechie bug. It wasn’t until we looked at your website and found pictures of the devils coachhorse that we got an idea that it was a beetle at all. We thought it was some kind of ant. The coloring is different than the devils coach horse, but the body shape was so similar we started doing a search on Cameroon Rove beetle and that is how we found our answer. We absoluely LOVE your site. It is in our favorites and we pull it up once a day to see your new postings. We thought you might be able to post this under your rove beetle section as I am sure other people out there would love to know what this insect is. Thanks for all your work!
Becca

creechie Creechie Bug: Rove Beetle from Cameroon creechie burn Creechie Bug: Rove Beetle from Cameroon

Hi Becca,
Well, we didn’t know anything about the Paederus Rove Beetle, so we had to google it. Sure enough, we found a site with photos of both the red and black beetles and the dermatitis it causes. Thanks for sending in your fascinating letter. We love the name Creechie.

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skaliner wrote:
Hi! I’m filming a documentary in Cameroon about beetles in February or March, and I’m looking for more information on the Creechie.
Do you think it would be possible for me to find Creechies in Nguti, Cameroon during Feb?March?
Please let me know if you can! It would be SOO helpful and amazing!
Thanks!
Steph
Posted 20 Dec 2011 at 3:13 pm ¶
bugman wrote:
Dear skaliner,
We do not know for certain if there is a season for Creechies in Camaroon. Perhaps one of our readers will be able to provide information.
Posted 21 Dec 2011 at 10:39 am ¶

Trackbacks & Pingbacks 6

From Contact Dermatitis in Panama: Might this be from a Bicho de Fuego??? | What's That Bug? on 28 Mar 2010 at 6:50 pm ¶
[...] or Acid Bug. We have posted letters with African species several times in the past, including January 2008 and again in May 2008. We found an online posting on the US National Library of Medicine website [...]
From Creechie Bug: Paederus Rove Beetle Warning for Bangkok Thailand | What's That Bug? on 08 Aug 2010 at 8:20 am ¶
[...] when we received a photo of the insect and the resulting contact dermatitis back in 2008. Missionaries in Cameroon sent us that account and we verified the information. We have received several letters from Sub-Saharan Africa, but we [...]
From Paederus Rove Beetle | What's That Bug? on 29 Aug 2010 at 9:10 am ¶
[...] from Africa where its warning coloration and unique defense system have earned it the local name of Creechie Bug. While doing additional research for our response to you, we found a website called DOCFILES with [...]
From Attack of the killer crichee* « Cameroon for beginners on 16 Oct 2010 at 4:10 am ¶
[...] http://www.whatsthatbug.com/2008/01/02/creechie-rove-beetle-from-cameroon/ [...]
From Potó from Brazil | What's That Bug? on 18 Jul 2011 at 11:13 pm ¶
[...] as the Creechie Bug, and the fluid they secrete can cause a serious case of contact dermatitis. Here is a link to the first image of a Creechie Bug we received in 2008. We like the Brazilian name Potó.Potó or Paederas Rove Beetle0 [...]
From Announcing a New Tag: The Big 5 | What's That Bug? on 19 Jul 2011 at 5:13 pm ¶
[...] continued … #2: Bark Scorpion #3: Red Headed Centipede #4: Black Widow #5: Cowkiller Runner-Up: Creechie Unlike the Big 5, the runner-up, the Paederus Rove Beetle, does not bite or sting, but it can cause [...]