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BugGuide Gathering
Pack Forest
Washington State
July 10-12, 2009
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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles (Polyphaga) » Fungus, Bark, Darkling and Blister Beetles (Tenebrionoidea) » Blister Beetles (Meloidae) » Epicauta
Photo#314825
Which Blister Beetle? - Epicauta
Copyright © 2009 Keith Roragen

Which Blister Beetle? - Epicauta
Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska, USA
August 3, 2009
Size: About 20mm
Blister beetle found feeding on Hosta. The dark area near the tip of the elytra is some kind of staining and disappeared within seconds of being exposed to the sun. The dash near the base of the elytra is permanent and occurs on both sides. Can anyone ID it? From the size I'm guessing a female. There were several smaller individuals as well.

Images of this individual: tag all
Which Blister Beetle? - Epicauta Which Blister Beetle? - Epicauta
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Contributed by Keith Roragen on 3 August, 2009 - 7:22pm
Last updated 5 August, 2009 - 7:51pm

Moved
Moved from ID Request.
… Keith Roragen, 5 August, 2009 - 7:51pm login or register to post comments

are you sure this is the same individual?
the "smaller individuals" were probably males then -- any photos of them?
… v belov, 3 August, 2009 - 10:25pm login or register to post comments

 
Yes.
this is the same individual. One picture was taken without flash and the other with, which is why one appears darker. I did not have a camera with me when I found this population of beetles on a large patch of hosta, so I captured one, brought it home and photographed it. So no, I don't have any pictures of the males. The males, I'm assuming they were males, were similar in appearance, but noticeably smaller.

One interesting thing I observed, one of the larger beetles, for lack of a better word, "mounted" one of the smaller beetles. Then, using its mandibles, it almost seemed to massage the smaller beetle's thorax and base of its abdomen. The smaller beetle continued eating for a while and then scurried away. The larger beetle pursued it for a while.

It puzzled me because it seemed like some kid of courtship ritual, only with the gender roles reversed.
… Keith Roragen, 4 August, 2009 - 5:59pm login or register to post comments

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