Spanish Fly

Have you ever come across an emerald green beetle with an unpleasant smell and wondered what is this insect called? Well, you must have come across the Spanish fly beetle that belongs to the family Meloidae. These beetles secrete cantharidin, that is an irritant to animal tissues. Lytta vesicatoria or Spanish flies have been used throughout many centuries by apothecaries for their medicinal uses.

What is Spanish Fly?

Spanish flies are European beetles that feed on tree leaves and their larvae grow wasps' nests. A buttery liquid is secreted by the beetle when it is threatened that causes reddening and skin rash. This is due to an odorless and crystalline substance called cantharidin. A dose of about 0.03g of cantharidin will prove to be lethal for humans. Thus, these insects are also called cantharides sometimes. Cantharidin given in high doses will cause excessive salivation, inflammation of stomach, kidneys, urino-genital system, headaches, vomitingand even bloody diarrhea. A person may develop seizures and death in extremely rare cases.

Scientific Classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthopoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Coleoptera
Family:	Meloidaw
Sub Family:	Meloinae
Tribe:	Lyttini
Genus:	Lytta
Species:	L. vesicatoria
Binomial name:	Lytta vesicatoria

Information
The beetle is about 15 mm to 22 mm long and about 5 mm to 8 mm wide. It feeds on ash, lilac, amur privet and white willow tree leaves. The larvae are parasitic in nature and feed on ground nesting bees. It lives in scrub-lands and woods of southern Europe and in the eastern regions of Central Asia and Siberia.

The Spanish flies have been used since many centuries and are also described by Hippocrates. It was seen that plasters were made from the beetles wings to raise blisters. Cantharides beetles were mixed with human excrement, arsenic and wolf's bane by ancient Chinese to make a stink bomb!

One of the most famous and commercialized uses of Spanish flies is for its aphrodisiac properties. It is said that the scheming wife of Augustus Caesar, Livia slipped it into the food of guests for some scandalous positions, so that she could easily blackmail them. They were slipped into the food for Louis XIV, to make him lust for Madame de Montespan.

Medicinal Uses
The beetle has been used as a topical application for treatment of benign epithelial growths. This included treatment of warts. Many times, cantharide was also used as an abortifacient and poison. One of the poisons that was thought to be used by Medics was aqua toffana or aquetta di Napoli. It was supposed to be a mixture of arsenic and cantharides, and just 4 to 6 drops of poison in wine or water could lead to a slow death.

Aphrodisiac
The Spanish fly is sometimes given to farm animals to incite the feelings of mating. These cantharides are secreted in urine that causes genital inflammation and may lead to priapism. Thus, this property is tapped commercially to help men maintain longer erections. However, the amount to be consumed is very miniscule and larger doses may lead to bloody discharge, painful urination, permanent damage to kidneys and genitals.

Commercial Frauds
You will find many Internet sites selling products as sex stimulants. However, cantherides are illegal in United States and these capsules contain cayenne pepper blended with ginseng, kelp, ginger, etc. Cantharides are only used by licensed physicians for topical warts treatment and used in animal husbandry.

These blistering beetles can lead to many health problems if one is not careful. Do not be fooled by Internet advertisements stating Spanish flies are useful in increasing sex drive. Speak to a qualified physician before taking any powder or capsule made of cantharides.