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Cambodia Breaking News (Battambang): On 1 October 2019, a 41-year-old woman, Kim Saki, a worker in Thailand who was home on holiday, died after eating roasted insects, in Sdey Leu village, Prek Lung commune, Ek Phnom district, Battambang.
The woman caught a lot of insects, and then roasted and ate them. Then she died of poisoning. RIP.

They look like some kind of beetle and do not look very appetizing.

CEOCambodiaNews wrote: ↑Wed Oct 02, 2019 1:15 pm They look like some kind of beetle and do not look very appetizing.

Generally with beetles you only eat the abdomen.

Is there an entomologist in the crowd who can identify the culprit?

taabarang wrote: ↑Wed Oct 02, 2019 7:10 pm Is there an entomologist in the crowd who can identify the culprit?

This is a better photo of the beast before cooking:

An autopsy conducted on the victim revealed that the woman had been poisoned by the insects. After the examination, the body was handed over to relatives for traditional rites. She left behind two children.

Blister beetle, mylabris pustulatus

I came up with blister beetle too.
But different latin name
Cantharis vesicatoria

https://todaysveterinarynurse.com/artic ... in-horses/

It seems many species of the Cantharis family (all called blister beetles) produces this toxic agent, Cantharidin
Also known as Spanish Fly - yep, the toxin and aphodisiac.

"Cantharidin is an odorless, colorless fatty substance of the terpenoid class, which is secreted by many species of blister beetles.[1] It is a burn agent or a poison in large doses, but preparations containing it were historically used as aphrodisiacs. In its natural form, cantharidin is secreted by the male blister beetle and given to the female as a copulatory gift during mating. Afterwards, the female beetle covers her eggs with it as a defense against predators.

Poisoning from cantharidin is a significant veterinary concern, especially in horses, but it can also be poisonous to humans if taken internally (where the source is usually experimental self-exposure). Externally, cantharidin is a potent vesicant (blistering agent), exposure to which can cause severe chemical burns. Properly dosed and applied, the same properties have also been used therapeutically, for instance for treatment of skin conditions such as molluscum contagiosum infection of the skin.

Cantharidin is classified as an extremely hazardous substance in the United States and is subject to strict reporting requirements by facilities that produce, store, or use it in significant quantities"

cousin of the rove beetle

They reckon we will all be eating insects to get our protein soon.
No way the planet can match the meat-eating aspirations of the exponential population curve.

Real worms and tomato sauce for breakfast will probably have more taste than Heinz canned spaghetti and meatballs anyway..

SternAAlbifrons wrote: ↑Thu Oct 03, 2019 6:15 am No way the planet can match the meat-eating aspirations of the exponential population curve.

I'm stickin' to Brazilian beef fried in Indonesian palm oil.

Seriously though - it's sad nobody taught her things with stripes and bright colours are usually nature's way of advertising the fact they are poisonous.
RIP

SternAAlbifrons wrote: ↑Thu Oct 03, 2019 6:15 am They reckon we will all be eating insects to get our protein soon.
No way the planet can match the meat-eating aspirations of the exponential population curve.

Real worms and tomato sauce for breakfast will probably have more taste than Heinz canned spaghetti and meatballs anyway..

According to estimates, more than 2 billion people worldwide eat insects every day. For many people it is the only available meat meal rich in protein, sugars and vitamins. Ants, bugs, grasshoppers and butterfly larvae are eaten in Asia, Africa and South America - says zoologist Dr. Radomir Jaskuła.
http://scienceinpoland.pap.pl/en/news/n ... y-day.html

I quite like red ant eggs, a bit of a delicacy here in Isaan, don t mind silkworm larvae and crickets if I am drinking.
Funny, a woman in Canada attempted to raise crickets on a large scale for eating. The Health dept shut her down because she couldn t identify each animal with a marker as chicken, pigs, cattle etc must-have. It seems very short-sighted to me, ground bugs make a decent flour and certainly at a much friendlier environmental cost.