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Project Noah Nature School
Meloe sp.
About 22mm long.
Suburban neighborhood, surrounded by mostly rural area.
My first Oil Beetle. When I found this specimen it was sluggishly climbing some vinyl siding. I didn't have my camera with me so I tried to scoop it into a container. It hung fast to the siding and I didn't want to damage it so I plucked it off into the container. In doing so, I got several drops of a water orange fluid on my hands. I presume this was hemolymph, the defensive secretion that gives Blister Beetles their name. I quickly washed it off and suffered no ill effects. When I got home and tried to photograph this beetle it wouldn't stop moving. I finally managed to get a decent shot while it crawled on my arm.
Spotted on Aug 29, 2012
Submitted on Aug 29, 2012
1 Comment
Neat find! It looks like an ant.