Head of an ant and body of a beetle!
Location: Northern Oregon
September 19, 2011 10:49 am
My friend took this up at her work in Northern Oregon…we have no idea what it is and I’ve looked through a bunch of pictures trying to find it! Any ideas?
Signature: Laura
Master Blister Beetle
Hi Laura,
We are guessing this is not a recent photo. Most of the photos we receive of Master Blister Beetles, Lytta magister, arrive in the spring, and they also hail from the deserts of California and Arizona, though we have received a submission from Washington. We like to utilize the range data on BugGuide, but alas, the site is currently unavailable.
Thank you for your help! The photo was recent- she took it yesterday, but a friend suggested it was a fire-colored beetle (Pyrochroid) and after looking a pictures online- it does resemble many of them. Not sure if that’s it or not, but it does look like it! And I’m not sure what time of year they normally come out but she saw it September 19th 2011. Thanks again for your response! Y’all have a great site!
We are certain that this is a Master Blister Beetle and NOT a fire colored beetle.
¶ Posted 20 September 2011 § ‡ ° No Idea what this is
Location: San Juan County New Mexico, USA
August 23, 2011 8:35 am
I have sent you the clearest photo possible. It seems to have a beetle like shell possible wings underneath, a head and neck that slink in and out like that of a slug and an Ant shaped head.
Signature: New bug watcher
Blister Beetle
Dear New bug watcher,
This is a Blister Beetle in the family Meloidae. We have identified the species as Pyrota concinna based on a few photos posted to BugGuide. This is a new species for our site. You should read up on Blister Beetles in our archive and on BugGuideso that you are aware of any potential dangers that might arise from trying to handle them.
Blister Beetle: Pyrota concinna
¶ Posted 23 August 2011 § ‡ ° Red one with black spots
Location: Turkey, İzmir
August 20, 2011 2:43 am
I want to know what is these. In which family?
Thank you very much
Signature: Sertaç TURHAN
Blister Beetle
Dear Sertaç TURHAN,
This is a Blister Beetle in the family Meloidae, and we posted a similar looking Blister Beetle from Croatia several years ago that we never identified. We found an article published on the internet, Blister Beetles (Coleoptera: Meloidae) in Nahavand County (Hamedan Province, Iran) and Their Ecological Relationship to Other Coleopteran Families by MR Nikbakhtzadeh, S Tirgari that has photos of two very similar looking beetles, Mylabris variabilis and Mylabris impressa. The Beetles (Coleoptera) and Coleopterologists website has a photo from this genus attributed to A.N. Posedko that is also very similar. We believe your beetle is also in the genus Mylabris. Blister Beetles should be handled with extreme caution, or better yet, not handled at all, as they can excrete a substance that causes blisters on skin.
¶ Posted 20 August 2011 § ‡ ° The web was no help
Location: New Mexico off I40 west of Continental Divide.
August 6, 2011 8:32 pm
I just wanted to know what it is that I found here. It moved quick so no great shots but, this is what I’ve got.
Signature: cali
Blister Beetle
Dear cali,
Please don’t bash the internet. It brought you to us and we are telling you that this is a Blister Beetle in the genus Megetra. You can find images in our archive as well as on BugGuide, which indicates they are: “Restricted to Chihuahuan Desert of the USA (TX, NM, and extreme southeastern AZ) and Mexico (where most of this desert region is located).”
Thanks for the quick response. I don’t usually bash the web but, in this case, my searches were fruitless. Usually having great success with web searches, I was just a bit frustrated to have to get help in the matter.
Thanks again,
Cali
With an insect, knowing where to begin a search or which key words to search is often critical for a fruitful result. We are glad you got your answer.
¶ Posted 07 August 2011 § ‡ ° Blister Beetle
Location: Lashburn, Saskatchewan
August 6, 2011 11:33 pm
Found this beetle hiding in my camera bag, and I’m very curious to know what it is. It was about 1 inch long.
Signature: Chris
Green Blister Beetle
Dear Chris,
You are correct that this is a Blister Beetle, and we believe it is in the genus Lytta, most likely either Lytta viridana or Lytta cyanipennis, the Green Blister Beetle. There is a section to BugGuide devoted to photos of what cannot be conclusively identified as either of these species, and it includes submissions from Saskatchewan and surrounding states in Canada and the U.S.
¶ Posted 07 August 2011 § ‡ ° Gunmetal-colored blister beetle?
Location: Albemarle County, Virginia
July 20, 2011 3:36 pm
Found this on a grapevine. Gorgeous matte gunmetal coloring. Guessing its a blister beetle but unsure.
Signature: Karl Hambsch
Blister Beetle
Hi Karl,
We concur with your guess that this is a Blister Beetle, and furthermore, we believe it is in the genus Epicauta based on the information provided on BugGuide, but the species identification is proving to be elusive. Numerous species in the genus Epicauta are gray in color, and there seems to be some variation in the tone within the species as well as overlap between the species. If you browse the genus Epicauta on BugGuide, you will see our quandary, especially since there are also subgenera to consider. You may try submitting your images to BugGuide and have the Blister Beetle expert Dr. Pinto take a stab at a species identification. Here are the guidelines posted on BugGuide for the types of details he likes to see in field photos to maximize the chances of a proper species identification: “There is no general recipe. For species ID of some we need to see palpi; for others its tibial spurs; for others it may be hind coxae. For the Caviceps Group the head capsule may be important. These features are not easily documented in field photos. In general, for the subgenus Macrobasis which includes many southwestern species we should have males. Males for all groups are generally best unless the species has a unique color pattern or a unique shape. Fortunately genitalia are of little to no use in Epicauta. Many common Epicauta are simply difficult to identify from photogarphs – field photos are poor substitutes for having a specimen in hand. It seems that it would eventually be worthwhile to photograph authoritatively identified material in museums – virtually all the US species of Epicauta could be done rather easily. Field photos seem to be an inefficient way to get our fauna documented for the non-specialist.”
Blister Beetle
¶ Posted 21 July 2011 § ‡ ° help to identify
Location: West Texas, USA
July 9, 2011 1:26 pm
Do you know what kind of bug this is? A friend found it. Very Curious!
Signature: Marci
Blister Beetle
Hi Marci,
This is a beautiful Blister Beetle, and a species we have not encountered before. We identified it as Epicauta atrivittata on the BioLib website.
¶ Posted 09 July 2011 § ‡ ° Flower eater
Location: Punjab, India
July 6, 2011 1:08 am
Hello! I found these giants busily eating my okra flowers. Any idea what they are?
Signature: Jerah
Blister Beetle
Hi Jerah,
We are really running late for work, and we need to meet with architects this morning, but we had to find time to post your exciting photos of Blister Beetles in the family Meloidae. Handle with caution. We also found a species name, Mylabris pustulata, on the Science Photo Library website.
Blister Beetle
¶ Posted 06 July 2011 § ‡ ° 
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