#meloidae

[PHOTOS TAKEN: JANUARY 8TH, 2025 | Image IDs: Four photos of a shiny black female oil beetle, three where it's on the side of a cardboard box, and one where it's next to it on a concrete tile /End IDs.]

Epicauta tenuis

A blister beetle found in North America. Adult beetles feed on plants. The larvae are predators on the eggs of grasshoppers. The beetles can significantly damage plants, and many Epicauta are known as agricultural pests around the world, even known to cause crop failures at times. As do other blister beetles, these produce cantharidin, a toxic terpenoid which can kill animals such as horses if they ingest enough of the beetles.

Brown Blister Beetle (Epicauda immaculata). Family Meloidae, order Coleoptera.

beetle fans, shape connoisseurs and people with bad skincare routines will all be familiar with Meloe, the oil beetles. this is a little animal i hadn't seen in over a decade until i casually found two on a random afternoon. i won't say how tempted i was to pick one up for a better photo

Pretty rare find - rugged oil beetle (Meloe rugosus)

+ her trying to eat my sweater ?