Help identifying a beetle/bug

gbremset

Hi everyone.

I need a little help here, identifying this insect that keeps "surrounding" us.
I work on a seismic ship in the ocean outside Calabar in Nigeria (Bight of Biafra), and lately, on sunny days, we've been seeing a lot of these bugs/beetles/ants (whatever you want to call them) coming in.. Apparently they fly in, and then drop their wings and run around..
They are pretty fast, have 3 pairs of legs (like an ant) and a head that looks much like an ant, with antennas about 3 times the size of the head, and it looks like it has jaws about half the size of the head.. They look a little like an ant, but very long and thin, and with only 3 sections to their body.. Head, neck and main body..

Starting from the head, which is black, the colour alternates between orange and black, so the next section (neck) is orange, then the first 1/3 of the body is black, then an equal part orange again, and ends in black, with something that looks like a tiny stinger.

The whole thing is about 0.7-1cm long, and this varies..

It would be nice to find out what kind of insect this is, as my curiosity is killing me.

Thanks in advance for any help..

-Gizmo-

Edit: I forgot to add that the locals we have with us call them "blister beetles", but when I google that I get something completely different. I have also tried to check out websites about the local ant-life, but nothing that looks the same..

sesswhat

Anything like this wasp? Search for Dasymutilla occidentalis.

gbremset

sesswhat wrote: »

Anything like this wasp? Search for Dasymutilla occidentalis.

Hmm.. no..

The colourings on the Dasymutilla occidentalis were quite similar, but the shape and size doesn't look right..

The whole body is about the same width all the way along, with the head and neck pieces being slightly smaller.
It's hard to find something to compare it with, but I'll post it here if I find something.
And they don't have wings on when they are crawling around, but I have seen one land, so I know at least some of them can fly. (Hence why I logically guessed that they land, and then drop their wings)

Since we are in the middle of the ocean, and they are randomly spread all over the boat, I expect that they all can fly, and have been carried by the wind or something..

Edit:
http://www.skpestelimination.com/termites.gif
In shape it looks a little bit like the one on the right in that picture, but with elbowed antennas and a thinner waist/neck/whatever.

Alun

When you say that they "drop" their wings when they land, do you mean that they actually lose them, or that they let them hang down somehow? Not that I have a clue either as to what they might be, but that may be an important clue.

Also, any chance of a photo?

gbremset

Alun wrote: »

When you say that they "drop" their wings when they land, do you mean that they actually lose them, or that they let them hang down somehow? Not that I have a clue either as to what they might be, but that may be an important clue.

Also, any chance of a photo?

Unfortunately my camera died, and I can't seem to figure out why, but they actually drop their wings.. Meaning that when we catch them crawling around on the ship, machinery or equipment, they have no wings..

My friend came up with a good explanation for them a moment ago, calling them "Ants that have been squeezed through a tube"

gbremset

I finally managed to get myself pictures of the bugs.. I stuck them on facebook, and here's the public link to those pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=905660&l=d6471&id=736729019

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=905662&l=de539&id=736729019

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=905663&l=7540e&id=736729019

Alun

Looks more like some kind of ant or termite to me than a beetle. Ants often shed their wings like that. There's probably hundreds if not thousands of species of ants in Africa, so it might be difficult finding out which one it is. Good luck!

tricky D

This pic gives the differences between flying ants and termites:



Also female termites shed their wings on landing for mating. The colouring on this one and pointed rear is a bit weird, but I'd go for some sort of termite.

gbremset

Great.. Thanks..

Now only the identification remains.. We're really starting to wonder now, because a colleague of mine got a bad rash on his arm and on his neck from either crushing them or being bitten (we don't know), but the nickname "blisterbeetle" that the locals use seems to fit well..

tricky D wrote: »

This pic gives the differences between flying ants and termites:



Also female termites shed their wings on landing for mating. The colouring on this one and pointed rear is a bit weird, but I'd go for some sort of termite.

AlanSparrowhawk

Hey there. Because you gave such a good description and got some photos up I did my best to ID your insect. Your insect looked a bit like a common european beetle, Devil's Coach Horse which is a type of Rove Beetle. A relation of this beetle is Paederus littoralis. Because you're off the coast of Africa I'm almost certain this insect is an example of the Nairobi "Fly" a beetle of the Paederus genus. The Paederus implies Pederin or what some call Beetle Juice. Its like a poison that exists within the insects "blood" or more correctly haemolymph. This is a very toxic substance so avoid contact with your skin. This means don't squish them with your bare feet, or swat at them with your hands if they land on you. If you burst them open they'll "burn" you. I read that they recommend you to blow them away. So short answer:

Paederus sabaeus

Beetles have an outer shell called elytra covering their flying wings which protects them from damage. So presumably these insects can fly and when they land their wings are tucked safely in behind their elytra.

AlanSparrowhawk

Some more information here. Technically speaking they're not blister beetles.

gbremset

I have just one thing to say... Simply brilliant.

I knew I could count on someone here at Boards.ie to get me the information I was looking for.
When checking it out on Google images, I even found pictures that looks like the blisters on my colleague's neck..

So.. Nairobi fly it is, and thanks "Alansparrowhawk" for the help. Thanks to everyone else who tried as well.

Go go insect-spray man, now it's your turn to help us.