Nomognatha Blister Beetles

Hi! It’s the Pistrums, Ray and Rayetta, or Rayetta and Ray. And well, these Nemognatha blister beetles are freaking us out. Here’s two of those Nemognathas on the same thistle. Plus we have pictorial evidence of another species/morph/changeling//whatever besides these twain.
Hark! Babies, don’t let your mothers grow up to be entomologists.

What is going on with these crazy blister beetles? They are supposed to be fixing to parasitize solitary bees with their nasty, incomprehensible spawn. But no solitary bee would ever land on a thistle occupied by these vermin. Get real. If you were a bee, would you try to squeeze in here, knowing full well you were fixing to pick up an especially nasty parasite. Not likely.

The thistle is a Tejano Booblican thistle (Cirsium texanum).