Beetles

Many Australian and overseas beetles produce toxic or irritant substances in venom, saliva or haemolymph. Allergy to these substances may cause problems for individual patients, who may require treatment with antihistamines or even adrenaline in severe cases. Irritant substances are common, and local pain or itch may be relieved by the application of ice packs or iced water. Whiplash rove beetles (Paederus sp.) are particularly associated with severe exfoliative dermatitis.

The order Coleoptera is the largest insect order. It contains four suborders, with many families and around 350, 000 species.

Related Treatments

• Beetles, Treatment for envenomation

Related Venomous creatures

• Arthropods, Australian

Books

• Adams, A. R. D. and Maegraith, B. G., Clinical Tropical Diseases, Fourth edn, Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, 1966. [ Details... ]

Conference Papers

• Dallas, E. D., 'Coleopteros que Originan Dermatitis en la Republica Argentina', in Proc. 7^th Inter. Cong. Entom., 1938, pp. 678-682. [ Details... ]
• Pavan, M., 'Biological Aspects of Insect Poisons', in 4^th International Congress of Biochemistry, vol. 12, 1959, pp. 15-36. [ Details... ]

Journal Articles

• Barnett, W. J., 'An Outbreak of Corneal Ulcers in Canberra', The Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 1, 1972, p. 240. [ Details... ]
• Cardani, C., Ghiringhelli, D., Mondelli, R., Pavan, M. and Quilico, A., 'Propriétés Biologiques et Composition Chimique de la Pédérine', Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr. (Annales de la Societe Entomologique de France?), vol. 1, N.S., 1965, pp. 813-816. [ Details... ]
• Earle, K. V., 'Toxic Effects of Hippomane mancinella', Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, vol. 32, 1938, p. 363. [ Details... ]
• Earle, K. V., 'Fuetazo Dermatitis', The Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, vol. 52, 1949, pp. 183-187. [ Details... ]
• Fleisher, T. L. and Fox, I., 'Oedemerid Beetle Dermatitis', Archives of Dermatology, vol. 101, 1970, pp. 601-605. [ Details... ]
• Goddard, S. J., 'An Outbreak of Corneal Ulcers in Canberra', The Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 1, 1972, p. 240. [ Details... ]
• Gordon, R. M., 'A Note on Two Vesicant Beetles Belonging to the Family Staphylinidae', Annals of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, vol. 19, 1925, p. 47. [ Details... ]
• Isaac, P. V., 'The Life History and Seasonal Abundance of the Vesicating Beetle Paederus fuscipes Curt.', Indian J. Agric. Sci., vol. 4, 1934, pp. 200-202. [ Details... ]
• Joyce, B., 'Dermatitis Apparently Caused by Staphylinid Beetles in Australia', Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 1, 1952, p. 553. [ Details... ]
• Kerdel-Vegas, F. and Goshman-Yahr, M., 'Paederus dermatitis', Archives of Dermatology, vol. 94, 1966, p. 175. [ Details... ]
• Léon, L. A., 'Dermatitis de Origen Vegetal', Bol. Hosp. "Eugenio Espejo" Quito, vol. 1, 1936, p. 6. [ Details... ]
• McClelland, H. W. H., 'An Outbreak of Corneal Ulcers in Canberra', The Medical Journal of Australia, 1972, p. 355. [ Details... ]
• McKeown, K. C., 'Dermatitis Apparently Caused by a Staphylinid Beetle in Australia', Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 2, 1951, p. 772. [ Details... ]
• Millard, P. T., 'Whiplash Dermatitis Produced by the Common Rove Beetle', Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 1, 1954, p. 741. [ Details... ]
• Moore, B. P. and Wallbank, B. E., 'Chemical Compostion of the Defensive Secretion in Carabid Beetles and Its Importance as a Taxonomix Character', Proc. R. ent. Soc. Lond., vol. 37, 1968, pp. 62-72. [ Details... ]
• Musgrave, A., 'Some Australian Insects Injurious to Man', Aust. Mus. Mag., vol. 2, 1924, p. 59. [ Details... ]
• Pavan, M. and Bo, G., 'Pederin, Toxic Principal Obtained in the Crystalline State from the Beetle Paederus fuscipes Curt.', Physiologia Comparata et Oecologia; An International Journal of Comparative Physiology and Ecology, vol. 31, 1953, pp. 307-312. [ Details... ]
• Pavlovsky, E. N. and Stein, A. K., 'The Cutaneous Poison of the Crystalline State from the Beetle Paederus fuscipes', Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, vol. 20, 1926-7, pp. 450-451. [ Details... ]
• Roberts, J. I. and Tonking, H. D., 'Notes on the East African Vesicant Beetle Paederus crepripunctatus Epp.', Annals of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, vol. 29, 1935, p. 415. [ Details... ]
• Selander, R. B., 'Bionomics, Systematics and Phylogeny of Lytta, a Genus of Blister Beetles (Coleoptera, Meloidae)', Illinois Biol. Monographs, vol. 28, 1960, pp. 1-295. [ Details... ]
• Selander, R. B., 'A Taxanomic Revision of the Genus Megetra (Coleoptera, Meloidae) with Ecological and Behavioural Notes', Canad. Entom., vol. 97, 1965, pp. 561-580. [ Details... ]
• Szent-Ivany, J. J. H. and Cleland, R. D. M., 'Observations on Beetles Causing Vesicular Dermatitis to Humans in the Territory of Papua and New Guinea', Trans. Papua and New Guinea Scientific Society, vol. 7, 1966, pp. 3-9. [ Details... ]
• Walker, T. D., 'An Outbreak of Corneal Ulcers in Canberra', The Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 1, 1972, p. 86. [ Details... ]
• Waterhouse, D. F., Forss, D. A. and Hackman, R. H., 'Characteristic Odour Components of the Scent of Stink Bugs', Journal of Insect Physiology, vol. 6, no. 2, 1961, pp. 113-121. [ Details... ]
• Wheeler, J. W., Chung., R. H., Oh, S. K., Benfield, E. F. and Neff, S. E., 'Defensive Secretions of Cychrine Beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae)', Annals of the Entomological Society of America, vol. 63, 1970, pp. 469-471. [ Details... ]