Oil beetle (English spelling)

Japanese: ツチハンミョウ(土斑猫) - ツチハンミョウ（英語表記）oil beetle

A general term for insects of the Meloe genus in the Meloidae family of the Coleoptera order. Their blue-blue or blue-black bodies are extremely obese around the abdomen, and females in particular are unusually large. Their upper wings are short and they lack hind wings, making them unable to fly. Body length is 8-30 mm. They emerge in the spring and feed on the leaves of various plants, including dandelions. When caught, they feign death and secrete a yellow liquid containing cantharidin from the joints of their legs. Females dig holes in the ground, bury their bodies in them, and lay as many as 1,000 or more eggs.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

甲虫目ツチハンミョウ科ツチハンミョウ属Meloeの昆虫の総称。青藍色，または黒藍色の体は腹部が著しく肥満し，とくに雌では異常に大きい。上翅は短く，後翅を欠き，飛ぶことができない。体長8～30mm。春出現してタンポポをはじめいろいろな植物の葉を食べる。とらえると擬死をして，脚の関節からカンタリジンを含んだ黄色の液を分泌する。雌は地面に穴を掘り，体をその中に入れて1000個，もしくはそれ以上もの卵を産む。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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