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Blister beetles are beetles of the family Meloidae, so called for their defensive secretion of a blistering agent, cantharidin. About 7,500 species are known worldwide. Many are conspicuous and some are aposematically colored, announcing their toxicity to would-be predators.

Unlike some insects, blister beetles don’t have stingers, nor are their jaws strong enough to break human skin.

The welts or blisters on your skin are a reaction to cantharidin, an odorless, colorless chemical the beetle releases to protect itself against its enemies.

Although cantharidin is highly toxic and dangerous to a blister beetle’s enemies, it’s not toxic to human skin. Contact with the substance, however, can cause a local reaction.