Blisters on the Sun - _TNY_8435

This beauty on a dandelion is a male Oedemera virescens, one of the false blister beetles. These are easy to sex as the boys have these thick thighs while the girls have more slender ones.

 

Now, you might think the name indicates that they (Oedemeridae) actually don't cause blisters like the true blister beetles (family Meloidae), but they do. The false part pertains to something else.

 

I am not certain about this particular species, but some in the family ooze the chemical cantharidin when pinched or squashed against the skin.

 

The Swedish language, as many others, don't distinguish between venomous (as in having a venom in a bite or sting) and poisonous (being toxic to eat) - we call both "giftig". This often irks me when Swedes mean venomous but say poisonous and aren't aware there is a difference. With these guys being full of cantharidin, I guess you really could say it is a poisonous beetle though.

 

For a shot of another one of these taken a little later, but on the underside of a dandelion, please have a look here: www.flickr.com/photos/tinyturtle/48801739857/

Done