The blister beetle Meloe proscarabaeus (Coleoptera : Meloidae)‎ a dangerous pest threatens field crops in new valley governorate, Egypt

Abstract EN

The blister beetle, Meloe proscarabaeus L.

(Coleoptera: Meloidae) was recorded for the first time as a serious insect pest attacking wheat (Triticum aestivum), faba bean , peas, alfalfa, onion and wild weeds in El- Farafra Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt.

Beetles feed on foliage and flowers of injured plants causing defoliation and crop loss.

The population dynamics and bionomic observations in the wheat fields of M.

proscarabaeus were studied during two successive seasons (2016/2017 and 2017/2018) in Wheat fields.

The pest develops one generation per year.

The beetle continued to appear during the first week of December to the first week of April, with the peak of adults at the first week of February.

Beetles secrete a cantharidin fluid, a potent blistering agent which burns plant leaves and flowers and at the same time, it is strong poison to all livestock and domestic animals feeding on contaminated plants.

The present work shed light on food plants, symptoms of infested crops, adult activity, environmental effects, and sexual behavior of the blister beetle M.

proscarabaeus under the circumstances of El- Farafra Oasis.