blister bug removal

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lkblazin

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How/what are the various ways to deal/eradicate blister beetles. I found a larvae in my hay....don't know for sure if it was one. Looked like those things you give lizards. I do not have a picture of it since i ....well..smooshed it to smithereens. They are known to kill horses so I reacted quickly. Of course I then proceeded to sift through the rest of the hay. So question is how do I make sure that I can get rid of the ones in my yard? I obviously can't do anything about my hay suppliers. But what about my yard? Anyone else had this before?
 
Blister bugs are only in alfalfa, to my knowledge. I've never heard of them in grass hay. Your hay grower knows all about them and can help answer your questions. When buying hay out of the field, turn the bale over and look under it, as the blister bug goes to the shady damp. They are usually in swarms, so some of the field may have them and the rest of the field does not.

I feed my alfalfa in small handfuls, and try to check for dried ones.

I did have one episode of blister bug, but I think it came from my horse grazing in the pasture and not from my hay. I did give the rest of that bale to my farmer neighbor for his cows, though. Late summer is usually when we see them. They can strip a giant clematis vine in an afternoon. We spray Tempo when we see them. I have been bitten before and the bite is very painful!

Not sure about the life cycle of the bug, where they go in winter.
 
Thank you Marsha. I found it in my alfalfa. I give them some alfalfa and some grass. But this was a pure alfalfa bale.
 

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