Nature Atlas

How Nature Works
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Taxa

Meloidae

Insect Families

Meloidae is a family of beetles in the order Coleoptera commonly known as blister beetles, named by Gyllenhaal in 1810. About 2,500 species are known worldwide, many of them conspicuous or brightly colored to advertise their toxicity to predators. Blister beetles produce a defensive secretion containing cantharidin, a blistering agent that has also been extracted historically for medicinal use. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Classification
Living or Extinct
Yes 1
Taxonomic Rank
Family 2
Sources
1. Wikidata (taxon extant/extinct status)
Wikimedia Foundation / Wikidata contributorsQ297115, descriptionView the Source
2. Meloidae (Wikipedia)
  • Introduction
    Blister beetles are beetles of the family Meloidae, so called for their defensive secretion of a blistering agent, cantharidin.
  • Taxonomic rank (structure-wave classification, ruling 761/926)
View the Source
Wikidata: Meloidae
Wikidata Q297115, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.