Categories
Blister Beetles, Mitesmetallic blue and black bug
Location: Rhide Island, USA
November 10, 2011 7:58 am
My kids found this in my backyard, in Rhode Island. It was taken with my android phone using it’s macro setting, if you look closely you can see a smaller orangish bug on its back, just behind his head. Could it be a baby or a little helper?
Signature: W Mcquade
Oil Beetle
Dear w Mcquade,
This is an Oil Beetle, a species of Blister Beetle. Blister Beetles can exude a compound known as cantharidin that is a blistering agent, so Blister Beetles should not be handled. We cannot make out the identity of the hitchhiker. It is not a baby blister Beetle. It may be a Phoretic Mite, but we have not heard of any Mites that use Blister Beetles for transportation.
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Comments 3
The hitchhiker appears to be a tick.
Posted 14 Nov 2011 at 11:03 pm ¶Not a tick, but a larval velvet mite. These are true parasites as larvae. Post-larval stages are predators.
Posted 24 Nov 2011 at 4:04 pm ¶Thanks for that clarification.
Posted 24 Nov 2011 at 8:09 pm ¶Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting.
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