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Mylabris variabilis
Blister beetle on St. John's wort (Hypericum sp.) flowers.
Mountain meadow near deciduous woodland.
Spotted on Jul 24, 2016
Submitted on Dec 4, 2016
2 Comments
Thanks for your comment Madison7. I think that Mylabris variabilis is native to Southern and Eastern Europe and is absent from USA. I didn't find any reference in the literature that M.variabilis is considered pest. Mylabris variabilis is different from bean leaf beetle (Cerotoma trifurcata) that is a pest of leguminous crops throughout the eastern United States.
Although the patterns on this bug is appealing to the eye, these beetles are one of the most damaging of the blister beetles to vegetable crops in the area. It prefers to feed on several common crops and fruits. It also has been guilty in the transmission of bean pod mottle virus to soybean.