Bugs bugging bugs.

The large beetle is a punctured blister beetle that I photographed while wandering through a patch of wildflowers with my macro setup. The two insects behind it are an unknown species of true bugs. I remained motionless for a period watching the insects' behaviours. The two bugs were following the beetle mercilessly; it was my opinion at the time that they were attempting to procure the larger insect for food purposes. The blister beetle was adamantly avoiding any association with its pursuers. I did not wait around long enough to see how the chase ended.

Blister beetles are remarkable in their own right. They get the name because they secrete a chemical called cantharidin which irritates the skin and causes blisters to later form, usually a few hours after contact. They have interesting feeding behaviours; the beetle larva feeds on the eggs, provisions, and young of ground-dwelling bees; grasshopper eggs may also be consumed. Adults are herbivorous and may be agricultural pests for specific crops, potatoes being one of them.

The chemical cantharidin has been used in folk medicine for hundreds of years. It was a common treatment for warts and musculum (a skin disease) and still finds use for these ailments on occasion. It can be taken orally with some risk. On the one hand, it has aphrodisiac properties and is more commonly known as Spanish Fly while on the other it can result in fatalities. I read an interesting account of a man that I copied in the space below.

"A keen fisherman obtained some pure cantharidin from an illicit source with the object of attracting fish. . . . He mixed the substance with water in a bottle, and, having no stopper for this, he used his thumb to occlude the opening. . . . Immediately following this, the patient handled his fishing-hooks, and in the process accidentally pricked the thumb . . . this caused him to suck the thumb. In this way, it appears, the cantharidin was transferred to the patient's mouth." Taken from the link here.

There are over a million species of insects in the world. The diversity of form, habit, and value varies tremendously. The more I learn about them the more fascinated I become.

Thanks for reading.     Ericspix     Eric Svendsen