Nick Upton / Black oil beetle (Meloe proscarabaeus) female excavating a nest burrow in coastal grassland, north Cornwall, UK, April.

Chris Mattison / Violet oil beetle (Meloe violaceus) on bark. Cadora Wood, Gloucestershire, England, UK. April.

Chris Mattison / Violet oil beetle (Meloe violaceus) on white background. Cadora Woods, Gloucestershire, England, UK. April.

Heather Angel / Spotted blister beetle (Ceroctis capensis) feeding on Gladiolus (Gladiolus alatus) petals. Cape Town, South Africa. September.

Nick Upton / Male Thick-legged flower beetle (Oedemera nobilis), with a Pyramidal orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis) pollinium attached to its head, nectaring on Common hogweed flowers (Heracleum sphondylium), Wiltsh...

Nick Upton / Female Thick-legged flower beetle (Oedemera nobilis) and a Meadow brown butterfly (Maniola jurtina) nectaring on Greater knapweed flowers (Centaurea scabiosa) in a chalk grassland meadow, Wiltshire, E...

Nick Upton / Female Thick-legged flower beetle (Oedemera nobilis) and a Meadow brown butterfly (Maniola jurtina) nectaring on a Greater knapweed flower (Centaurea scabiosa) in a chalk grassland meadow, Wiltshire,...

Nick Upton / Juvenile Goldenrod spider (Misumena vatia) camouflaged on a Common hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium) flowerhead, reacting to a nearby fly (Muscidae) and a Thick-legged flower beetle (Oedemera nobilis),...

Nick Upton / Male Thick-legged / Swollen-thighed flower beetle (Oedemera nobilis) feeding on nectar and pollen on a Meadow buttercup (Ranunculus acris) flower, England, UK. May.

Nick Upton / Thick-legged flower beetle / False blister beetle (Oedemera femoralis) male on Ivy (Hedera helix) flowers at night, Wiltshire, UK, September.

Kerstin Hinze / Oil beetle (Meloe proscarabaeus) laying eggs in the ground, Filzwald, Bavarian Forest National Park, Germany, May.

Kerstin Hinze / Black oil beetle (Meloe proscarabaeus) laying eggs in hole. Filzwald, Bavarian Forest National Park, Bavaria, Germany. May.