Lady Bug (Lady beetles / Ladybird beetles)

Coccinellidae

Appearance

• 0.04 to 0.4 inches long.
• Yellow, orange, or red with small black spots on their wings.

Lifecycle

• Mate in Spring or Summer
• Female can lay anything up to a few hundred eggs at a time.
• Larvae are spiny, black and have brightly colored spots
• Small life cycle of between 4–7 weeks.

Habits

• Feeding - aphids, small insects and mites. A ladybug can eat around 5,000 aphids in its lifetime. Larvae are also predators for food.
• Location - Predatory ladybirds are usually found on plants where aphids or scale insects are.
• The spots and bright colors make them unappealing to predators. If a ladybug feels threatened it will secrete a fluid which is foul to taste.