Often called ladybugs in the United States, ladybird beetles are much more varied than the familiar red beetle with black spots: some are yellow, pink, black, striped, or almost spotless. Many hunt aphids and other soft-bodied pests, but the family also includes fungus feeders and plant-eating species such as the Mexican Bean Beetle.

In this group

Asian Lady BeetleHarmonia axyridis

This introduced species varies from yellow to red or black and may have many spots or none. A dark M-shaped mark behind the head is a useful clue.

Seven-spotted Lady BeetleCoccinella septempunctata

This introduced, widespread species has three black spots on each wing cover plus one shared spot near the front.

Convergent Lady BeetleHippodamia convergens

A familiar native species in western and central regions, it has two pale lines on the that angle toward one another.

Spotted Pink Lady BeetleColeomegilla maculata

This native beetle is pink to red, more elongated than many ladybirds, and eats pollen as well as aphids and insect eggs.

Twice-stabbed Lady BeetleChilocorus stigma

A shiny black adult with one red spot on each wing cover, it is often found on trees where scale insects occur.

Mexican Bean BeetleEpilachna varivestis

Unlike most familiar ladybirds, this yellow-orange, spotted species eats bean leaves and is a crop pest in parts of the United States.

Appearance

Appearance
Larvae look nothing like the round adults. They are long, tapered, and often dark with orange or pale markings and small spines, giving them an alligator-like shape.
How to recognize it
Adults are usually broadly oval and strongly domed, with hard covering the abdomen. Red with black spots is only one pattern; black, yellow, orange, pink, striped, and spotless species all occur.

Look-alikes

Leaf BeetlesChrysomelidae

Some leaf beetles are just as rounded and colorful. Lady beetles usually have short antennae with thicker tips and a small head tucked into the thorax; many leaf beetles have more threadlike antennae and a more visible head. Some photos will not settle the difference.

Why they get mixed upBoth families include small beetles that sit openly on leaves.

Where it lives

Typical habitats
  • gardens and farms
  • meadows and woodland edges
  • trees and shrubs
Range
Ladybird beetles live throughout the United States. A single state can have dozens of species, including both native and introduced beetles, and the mix changes by region and habitat.
Preferred conditions
Look where their food occurs: aphid-covered stems, scale-infested branches, mildewed leaves, or the host plants of plant-feeding species. Adults may gather in protected cracks, leaf litter, bark, or buildings for winter.
When it’s recorded

Recorded year-round, every year · most records in Apr–Jun

338,985 observations in the US · 10 years · for reference

Behavior

Diet
Many larvae and adults eat aphids and other soft-bodied insects. Some family members eat fungi or plant leaves instead.
Activity
Adults and larvae search leaves and stems for food. Adults can fly away when disturbed, tuck in their legs and drop, or release a defensive fluid.
Overwintering
Many species spend winter as adults in leaf litter, under bark, or in sheltered cracks. Some, especially the Asian Lady Beetle, may enter buildings in large numbers.

Life cycle

Reproduction
Ladybird beetles undergo through egg, larva, , and adult stages. Predatory species often place clusters of yellow or orange eggs near aphids or other prey.
Larva
Larvae move actively and eat before attaching to a leaf or stem to pupate. Their spiny appearance often leads people to mistake them for plant pests.

Cautions

Cautions
A disturbed beetle may release a foul-smelling yellow fluid from its leg joints. Wash your hands after handling one and avoid touching your eyes or mouth.

Connected species

Ties with other wildlife
Many species eat aphids, scale insects, mites, mealybugs, and insect eggs. Other members eat mildew or plants, so identifying the species matters before calling it beneficial or harmful.
Parasitoids
  • Pediobius foveolatus

    In U.S. bean fields, this wasp is released to parasitize Mexican Bean Beetle larvae.

Prey
  • AphidsAphididae

    Many predatory ladybird larvae and adults hunt aphids on plants.

Food plants
  • Common BeanPhaseolus vulgaris

    Mexican Bean Beetle larvae and adults feed on its leaves.

Name and classification

Group name
Ladybird beetles, lady beetles, and ladybugs are common U.S. names for the family Coccinellidae. Despite the name ladybug, these insects are beetles rather than true bugs.
Number of species
Nearly 6,000 species are known worldwide.

Conservation

Threats
Broad-spectrum insecticides can kill predatory ladybird beetles along with the pests they help control. Introduced species can also compete with native ladybird beetles.
22 sources
  1. iNaturalist taxon API — Coccinellidae
  2. Ladybirds, Ladybird beetles, Lady Beetles, Ladybugs of Florida, Coleoptera: Coccinellidae
  3. Lady Beetle Habitat
  4. 칠성무당벌레 Coccinella septempunctata
  5. 남생이무당벌레 Aiolocaria hexaspilota
  6. 노랑무당벌레 Illeis koebelei
  7. 큰이십팔점박이무당벌레 Henosepilachna vigintioctomaculata
  8. ナミテントウ
  9. 국립생물자원관 딱정벌레 목록
  10. UC IPM Lady Beetles
  11. Ability of Henosepilachna vigintioctomaculata to use Solanum carolinense
  12. 大阪市立自然史博物館図鑑 キイロテントウ
  13. Lady beetles | UMN Extension
  14. テントウムシ - Web NDL Authorities
  15. 국립농업과학원 곤충자원관 — 무당벌레
  16. 큰이십팔점박이무당벌레
  17. Mexican Bean Beetle, Epilachna varivestis
  18. ナナホシテントウ
  19. University of Utah — Chrysomelidae
  20. University of California Riverside — Ladybird Beetles
  21. iNaturalist — Pediobius foveolatus
  22. 大阪市立自然史博物館 — 日本のテントウムシ図鑑（2005）
Ladybird Beetles (Coccinellidae) — identification, habitat & look-alikes | Moeyo