Blister Beetle, lateral view

  • Macroscopic Solutions
  • Digital Images
  • Online

Available online

view Blister Beetle, lateral view

Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

You can use this work for any purpose, as long as it is not primarily intended for or directed to commercial advantage or monetary compensation. You should also provide attribution to the original work, source and licence. Read more about this licence.

Credit

Blister Beetle, lateral view. Macroscopic Solutions. Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). Source: Wellcome Collection.

Selected images from this work

View 1 image

About this work

Description

Blister Beetle Blister beetles are of the family Meloidae, they are called blister beetles as the chemical they secrete in defense is the blistering agent cantharidin. Some species are brightly coloured to warn predators of the danger whilst others such as the one pictured here are more conspicuous. Although toxic, cantharidin has been used in folk medicine and more recently its properties appear in some preparations for topical ointments used to treat skin infections. Width of Image 1.5 centimetres

Contributors

Permanent link