Trichomeloe chrysocomus (Miller, 1861) - Oil beetle - Cyprus

Trichomeloe is a genus of beetles in the oil beetle family Meloidae.  The genus was first scientifically described in 1911 by Reitter.

Trichomeloe chrysocomus in Europe is present only in Cyprus.

They are known as "oil beetles" because they release oily droplets of hemolymph from their joints when disturbed; this contains cantharidin, a poisonous chemical causing blistering of the skin and painful swelling. Members of this genus are typically flightless, without functional wings, and shortened elytra.

As in other members of the family, they are hypermetamorphic, going through several larval stages, the first of which is typically a mobile triungulin that finds and attaches to a host in order to gain access to the host's offspring. In this genus, the host is a bee, and each species of Meloidae may attack only a single species or genus of bees; while sometimes considered parasitoids, it appears that in general, the Meloidae larva consumes the bee larva along with its provisions, and can often survive on the provisions alone, thus they do not truly qualify (see Parasitoid for definition).From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos  Kormakitis ,25/1/2015 by George Konstantinou