Blister beetle: A blister beetle is one of a number of beetles that have historically been used in dried or powdered form for medicinal purposes to raise blisters on the skin. An example of a blister beetle is the so-called Spanish fly. All blister beetles are soft-bodied beetles and belong to the family Meloidae.
common name: blister beetles scientific name: (Insecta: Coleoptera: Meloidae) Introduction - Distribution - Description - Life Cycle - Annotated List of Species - Medical ...
n. Any of various soft-bodied beetles of the family Meloidae, such as the cantharis, that secrete a substance capable of blistering the skin. Also called meloid
Blister beetles, Epicauta sp. (Coleoptera: Meloidae), mating on Texas mountain laurel. Photo by Drees.
BLISTER BEETLE INTOXICATION . CANTHARIDIN POISONING (http://www.ent.iastate.edu/imagegal/coleoptera/blister/0121.35margblistb.html) Chem 377: Chemistry of Drugs and Poisons
by L.H. Townsend, Extension Entomologist University of Kentucky College of Agriculture . Blister beetles are members of a family of plant-feeding insects (Meloidae) that ...