Transcript Blister Beetle1

Blister Beetle
 The
family Meloidae, blister beetles,
contains about 2500 species, divided
among 80 genera and three subfamilies
Description:


Blister beetles vary by species in shape, size (3/8 to
1 inch long) and color (solid gray to black or with
paler wing margins, metallic, yellowish striped or
spotted).
Most are long, cylindrical narrow-bodied beetles that
have heads that are wider than the first thoracic
segment (pronotum). The wing (elytra) covers are
usually soft and pliable.

Although over 100 species occur
in Texas, common blister
beetles include:, the black
blister beetle; Epicauta
pennsylvanica (De Geer), E.
occidentalis (east and central
Texas) and E. temexa (south
Texas) are mostly orangishyellow with three black stripes
on each of the wing covers
(elytra). A west Texas species,
Cysteodemus armatus LeConte,
has wing covers that are broadly
oval and convex, colored black
with bluish or purplish highlights.
Blister beetles,
Epicauta sp.
(Coleoptera: Meloidae),
mating on Texas mountain laurel.
Photo by Drees
Life Cycle:

Complete metamorphosis;
hypermetamorphosis.
Winter is spent in later larval
stages and pupation occurs
in the spring. The pupal
stage lasts about 2 weeks
and adults appear in early
summer. Female beetles lay
clusters of eggs in the soil.
The first stage (instar) larva
hatching from the egg
(triungulin) is a tiny, active,
long-legged larva that seeks
the appropriate host.
Blister Beetle Life Cycle
A = adult, E = egg, T = first instar or
triungulin, FG = first grub phase,
C = coarctate phase in instar six or seven,
SG = second grub phase, P = pupa
Habitat and Food Source(s):

Mouthparts are for
chewing. Blister beetle
species feed on flowers
and foliage of a wide
variety of crops
including alfalfa,
ornamental plants,
potatoes, garden
vegetables and other
plants.
Black blister beetle,
Epicauta pennsylvanica (DeGeer)
(Coleoptera: Meloidae),
on goldenrod flowers.
Photo by Drees
Medical and Veterinary
Importance

Blister beetles receive their
common name from the
ability of their hemolymph to
produce blistering on contact
with human skin.
Hemolymph is often exuded
copiously by reflexive
bleeding when an adult
beetle is pressed or rubbed.
Blisters commonly occur on
the neck and arms, as the
result of exposure to adult
beetles attracted to outdoor
lights at night.
Pest Status:
 Adults
usually occur in loose groups or
swarms that feed on leaves of certain
plants, especially legumes. Their bodies
contain a toxin (cantharadin) that can
cause blisters to form on the skin.
Animals, particularly horses, ingesting
beetle contaminated feed become
extremely ill and may die. Handling blister
beetles can cause blisters on the skin as a
reaction to cantharadin
 Cases
of fatal poisonings of valuable
horses in Florida, Oklahoma, Tennessee,
and Texas by ingestion of blister beetles
trapped in baled alfalfa hay