The main enemy of aphids is the ladybug, the stages of its development.

The ladybug is one of the most common and recognizable insects. Each child held a tiny red bug with black dots in the palm of his hand, whispered a simple rhyme from memory, and patiently waited for ladybug spread its wings and fly away to fulfill a wish.

Ladybug in drops of morning dew.

Ladybug on chamomile.

The ladybug spread its wings.

Ladybug on a red flower.

Seven-spotted ladybug on a blade of grass.

Ladybug looking for aphids.

Ladybug on a yellow flower.

Ladybug on some flower.

Ladybug is preparing to take off from the fir tree.

Ladybug on a leaf.

Ladybugs clung to a stump (photo taken in Sequoia National Forest).

Ladybug is preparing to take off.

Ladybugs have chosen the tops of the grasses.

Ladybugs have chosen the leaves of a young cosmea for an overnight stay.

Ladybug on chamomile.

Ladybug. Photo from Italy.

Ladybug on forget-me-nots.

Ladybug takes off.

Ladybug on chamomile.

Today, about 360 genera of these insects are known to science, including more than 4 thousand species. A typical representative of the family is the seven-spot ladybug, which is found in Eurasia, North Africa, and now in America, where it was specially brought as an effective biological agent for combating agricultural pests. Photos of the seven-spot ladybug prevail on this page.

What does a ladybug look like

Ladybugs are arthropods from the Coleoptera order. This means that the body of the beetle consists of segments with paired jointed legs, and its front wings are modified into hard elytra, resembling shells, under which the hind wings folded on the back are hidden.

The sizes of these beetles are quite modest: an adult seven-spot ladybird does not exceed 7 - 8 mm in length. The elytra of insects are bright red or Orange color with well-marked seven black dots. The warning coloring scares off potential enemies, and if this does not help, the ladybug pretends to be dead or releases a stream of poisonous, foul-smelling liquid - hemolymph towards the offender.

Life cycle

One female ladybug can lay up to 1000 eggs per season - large (about 1.2 mm), orange, with a sharp top. With favorable weather conditions full development from an egg to an adult beetle occurs in 2 - 3 weeks.

The larva of the seven-spot ladybug looks rather bizarre: its body, elongated and strongly thickened in front, is gray-blue in color with yellow dots.

Asian ladybug larva (Harmonia axyridis).

After the larval stage, which lasts 5-7 weeks, pupation occurs. The pupal stage takes about 12 days, after which the fully formed beetle breaks out.

The main source of nutrition for larvae and adults is aphids, scale insects, whiteflies, as well as eggs of butterflies and moths. The consumption of a typical diet of these predators is provided by gnawing mouthparts, which can only be seen in a macro photo of a ladybug.

Among the variety of cows, the four-spotted exochomus stands out - a bug no more than 5 mm long with black glossy elytra and 4 red spots.

Ladybug Four-spotted exochomus (Exochomus quadripustulatus).

Ladybug Harlequin, she is also an Asian ladybug, is distinguished not only by her bright appearance, but also by her desire to conquer the world, gradually crowding out related species.

The fourteen-spot ladybird is an amazing member of the family, whose elytra is covered not with dots or spots, but with an intricate black and yellow pattern.

Ladybug fourteen-spotted (Propylea quatuordecimpunctata).

The thirteen-spot ladybug (called Hippodamia tredecimpunctata in Latin) has an elongated body. The red-brown elytra each have six and a half points, that is, one point is located at the junction of the elytra closer to the head of the beetle.

Thirteen-spot cow (lat. Hippodamia tredecimpunctata).

Ladybug is primarily associated with childhood. The moment is naively beautiful when an insect with wings red with black polka dots crawls on the palm of a child, and the baby quietly whispers to him the words: “Ladybug, fly to the sky ...”, makes up her own mind and releases her into the blue heights. By the way, these magical insects fly fast enough, producing up to 85 flaps of their wings per second.

Ladybug - a mysterious insect that descended from heaven

More than one child's mind asked himself and his parents: "Why was the ladybug called that?" This is a common insect of the beetle family that lives in shrubs, trees and grass, which brings great benefit, eating harmful aphids and mites - pests that are detrimental to plants. And such an unusual name is associated with something distant and sublime.

And yet - why was the ladybug called that? Perhaps her biological ability to give "milk" served as a fundamental factor for this. Even, rather, not to give, but to secrete a milky liquid in case of danger at the sight of a possible predator. Moreover, in color it is not white, like the usual milk, but red! Extremely unpleasant in taste, and in large doses almost fatal, it is released from the pores present in the folds of the limbs. Once upon a time, people treated diseased teeth with ladybug's milk, believing in its healing properties.

Ladybug: methods of protection against enemies

Also, as a protection, the ladybug is endowed with a bright color, almost screaming about the inedibility of a pretty bug. In case of extreme danger, a small insect can save its precious life by pretending to be dead.

The above protective measures are so effective that birds and frogs avoid these winged insects, even tarantula spiders do not feed on them. If some careless bird dares to swallow a ladybug, it will severely burn its throat with a poisonous liquid secreted by the victim.

Why is the ladybug called that? For children, this riddle is partially solved. At least with the word "cow" everything is clear. That is, to the question of why the ladybug was so named, the answer is half received: for the ability to give "milk".

Why is a ladybug associated with the Almighty

It remains to understand why this insect is called "God's". According to the beliefs of the old times, the ladybug lives in heaven and descends to earth occasionally, as a good messenger. The ladybug (why it is so named is described in this article) can tell you what the weather expects in the near future, what the grain harvest will be like today. Only she can descend on the palm of her hand to hear and convey to the Almighty something personal, exciting or a dream, cherished and distant. It is not for nothing that the children, who are angels on Earth, know magic rhymes with the words: "Ladybug, fly to heaven ...".

Ladybug veneration in the world

The winged beetle is revered for divinity in many countries. So, in Germany it is called the "beetle of St. Mary the Virgin", in England - "the bird of the Virgin", "Lady bird", in Argentina - "St. Anthony's cow". In ancient times, the word "God's" meant "harmless, meek, peaceful." It is with these features that the ladybug that evokes a sense of trust and tenderness is endowed.

Why this cute insect is so named, we can draw conclusions based on the benefits it brings in agriculture, namely the salvation of crops from the invasion harmful aphids, as well as spider mites, which in its short life it can destroy up to 4000 individuals. Earlier, when chemicals and fertilizers had not yet been invented, it was noticed that in the habitats of the ladybug, the safety of crops is better, there are fewer gnawed leaves and, accordingly, higher yields. Therefore, many peasants specially collected small bugs and transferred them to their gardens as reliable protection grown products.

Description of the ladybug

There are more than 5 thousand species of ladybugs in the world, the color range of the wings of which is quite wide: it is the usual red, pink, yellow, orange, white and even black colors that attract sincere curiosity and genuine interest to such a pretty insect. Points on the back of a winged insect, which can be up to 22 pieces, are designed to scare off potential enemies. The number of spots on the back of the bug does not change during its life. The most common species is a seven-spot representative of a cute insect, the size of which is only 7-8 mm.

Signs associated with a ladybug

There is a sufficient number folk signs associated with these insects and explaining why the ladybug is so called. Briefly, this can be combined in one concept: love - for God, the world, nature, neighbor. Yes, in Asian countries It is believed that the ladybug helps to find your soul mate. If the heavenly messenger is released, then she will fly straight to the betrothed or betrothed, whisper the cherished name in her ear. And then the meeting of lovers will definitely happen. Why is the ladybug called that? Probably for the miracles that she performs, helping lonely people find each other in this world.

Ladybug is a great traveler, and her behavior remains a mystery to scientists to this day. Sometimes she winters at home, eating the stocks accumulated over the summer, and sometimes, joining many relatives, she flies over the horizon to distant lands.

In honor of ladybugs, even monuments have been erected in cities such as New York and the suburbs of Milwaukee in the state of Wisconsin (USA), Tokyo (Japan), Warsaw (Poland), Millau (France) and Volgograd (Russia).

Causing harm to this insect is considered a great sin, so it is not recommended to offend a ladybug.

Later it turned out that there are more than 1000 species of ladybugs (lat. Coccinellidae) in the world. They live on different places: some liked the plants on which aphids live (these, apparently, are the laziest, or better to say, pragmatic - food is always at hand), others looked after themselves indescribably beautiful field herbs, while others liked the meadows overlooking the stream, some preferred to sit on aquatic plants altogether.

The most common species appears to be the seven-spotted ladybug (Coccinella septempunctata). Its black breast is decorated with a whitish spot in the anterior corner, on the red elytra there are seven black dots (three on each elytron and one common scutellum). It is found in Europe, North Africa, Asia and feeds on aphids.

According to the atlas of ladybugs, you can meet a ladybug with a number of spots from two to twenty-six.

This is what a ladybug with two dots (Adalia bipunctata) looks like.

It is curious that this particular ladybug was approved as the national insect of Latvia in 1991 by the Society of Entomologists of Latvia. She is useful, slow by nature, but this does not prevent her from defending herself well, precisely thanks to appearance and behavior she is so loved in Latvia. In Latvian, she is called marite, which is the name of the Latvian ancient deity Mara, who embodies earthly power.

And so - with 22 points (Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata).

I recently read about an amazing cow (Ailocaria hexaspilota Hope), whose wing pattern is indeed worthy of surprise and philosophical treatises. This type of ladybug can be found here only in the south Far East. She lives first on bird cherry, and by the end of May she moves to Manchurian walnut. He loves to eat leaf beetles. It is also surprising that flocks of amazing cows accumulate during the wintering period. Imagine how beautiful it turns out!

To the question How long do ladybugs live? given by the author Oksana Myagkaya the best answer is Ladybug females lay about 400 eggs on plants in the spring, after a week they hatch into ladybug larvae, and the development time from them to an adult beetle is from 30 to 60 days. In a year, two generations of these insects are replaced.
As children, we believed that the number of points on the wings indicates the age of the cow.
There are more than 1000 species of ladybugs in the world. They live in different places: some liked the plants that are inhabited by aphids (these, apparently, are the laziest, or better to say, pragmatic - food is always at hand), others looked after field grasses of indescribable beauty, while others liked the meadows with a view on the stream, some preferred to sit on aquatic plants altogether.
The most common species, it turns out, is the seven-spotted ladybug. Its black breast is decorated with a whitish spot in the anterior corner, on the red elytra there are seven black dots (three on each elytron and one common scutellum). It is found in Europe, North Africa, Asia and feeds on aphids.
You can meet a ladybug with a number of spots from two to twenty-six.

This is what a ladybug with two dots (Adalia bipunctata) looks like.
It is curious that this particular ladybug was declared the national insect of Latvia in 1991. It is useful, slow in nature, but this does not prevent it from defending itself well - it is precisely because of its appearance and behavior that it is so loved. In Latvian, she is called marite, which is the name of the Latvian ancient deity Mara, who embodies earthly power.

And so - with 22 points (Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata).
I recently read about an amazing cow (Ailocaria hexaspilota Hope), whose wing pattern is indeed worthy of surprise and philosophical treatises. This type of ladybug can be found here only in the south of the Far East. She lives first on bird cherry, and by the end of May she moves to manchurian walnut. He loves to eat leaf beetles. It is also surprising that flocks of amazing cows accumulate during the wintering period. Imagine how beautiful it turns out!

No matter how many dots decorate the back of a ladybug, it is beautiful to the envy of all insects and to the joy of people.

Answer from Vika_N[guru]
do not live long if my daughter caught them

Answer from compound abbreviated[guru]
More than 4,000 species of ladybugs are known in the world fauna. Why did ladybugs get such a strange name? Obviously because there are cows of different colors, with dark and light spots. And "God's" - because these beetles give the impression of harmless creatures: they do not sting, do not bite, and only when caught, they release a yellow "milk". The bright coloring of ladybugs warns of their inedibility.
Ladybugs are successfully used in biological control. The main food of ladybugs is aphids, psyllids, coccids, which deplete plants by sucking juices and polluting the stomata of leaves with their secretions. Cows, laying eggs, attach them in places of accumulation of sucking insects, and the emerging larvae immediately attack the prey.
One of the most interesting aspects of the biology of ladybugs is their seasonal migrations and mass accumulations of beetles in wintering areas. Some cows form clusters in autumn on rocky slopes, walls of buildings, gradually climb into cracks and winter there. During the migrations of cows, the rocks and walls of houses are completely covered with beetles. The reasons for the formation of clusters of cows have not been finally clarified.
How many aphids does a ladybug eat
Ladybugs kill aphids. One beetle of the seven-spot ladybug eats 40-50 aphids daily, and its larva during its development period up to 600-800 aphids.
Ladybugs mate more than any other creature
Ladybugs mate more than any other creature: every day, and even nine hours a day. Orgasm for both sexes lasts ninety minutes and can come one after the other three times in a row.
In the intervals between reproduction, insects have to feed continuously.
What are the diseases of ladybugs
Nine out of ten ladybugs living in London suffer from a venereal disease. This figure is much higher than in all other cities in the UK. Scientists believe that high air pollution is to blame. The rate at which ladybugs reproduce increases the spread of disease. "After wintering, they become remarkably illegible," the scientists say. As it turned out, the number of venereal diseases in them is higher than in all other insects. Fortunately for ladybugs, the effects of the disease are much milder than in humans.

Answer from Neurologist[guru]
link
Ladybugs are red with black dots, yellow with black spots, yellow with white spots, and even completely black. But almost all of them eat aphids. There are cases when ladybugs saved entire gardens from the invasion of aphids! For this, people are very grateful to them.

AT wonderful world nature, you can find a bright insect that is liked not only by children, but also by adults. This is a ladybug. AT vivo habitats are more common yellow and red ladybugs. Black spots are clearly visible on the backs of insects. More than 400 species live in nature. The distribution area is everywhere, except for areas with a year-round cold climate.

Ladybug is a small insect, with a body size of 4-10, 11 mm. The spotted beetle belongs to the order Coleoptera. The body has an elongated, oval-like or roundish shape. When viewed from above, the body is strongly convex, from below it is flattened. On the surface of many species, hairs are clearly visible - a barely noticeable pubescence.

body structure:

• head;
• front back;
• chest (including 3 sections);
• abdomen;
• 3 pairs of paws;
• wings with hard elytra.

The front back of a beautiful bug has a transverse structure, strongly convex, a notch is clearly visible on the front edge.

The small head of the spotted beetle is slightly elongated forward and in a fixed way aligned with the front breast. Eyes large, not protruding, antennae very flexible, consisting of 8 segments.

On the upper part there are spots of various colors and shapes, which do not appear immediately after birth, but after a couple of weeks have passed.

The rear chest, in contrast to the front chest and middle chest, which are elongated across the calf, looks like a square.

The cute insect has 6 moderately long legs, each of which consists of 3 explicit and one hidden segment. The paws help the bug quickly sort through each blade of grass and crawl along the grass. The abdomen consists of 5-6 segments.

With the help of the hind wings, cute insects fly. The forewings eventually degenerated into rigid elytra. They serve as protection for the hindwings while the insect is crawling on the grass.

The bugs of various colors secrete cantharidin (a dangerous poison), thereby fearing from predators.

The protective covers of the bug can be painted black, yellowish, deep red, brownish or blue colors with black, red, yellowish or whitish spots. All points have different shape. In many insects, the spots merge together, forming spreading patterns. In some insects, they are completely absent. By the pattern, you can understand and determine what gender the ladybug is.

According to scientists, birds do not pose a danger to insects, as they emit a poisonous substance that is dangerous to birds. The bright coloring signals that the birds do not approach and scares them away.

Where does it live?

Beautiful bugs are distributed on all continents. They populated all areas. The exceptions are areas where the temperature does not exceed 0°C throughout the year and Antarctica.

The insect can be found in all European countries: Great Britain, fragrant in the colors of Denmark, Sweden, France, Iceland. Germany, Italy, Poland also sheltered this bright insect. Ladybugs fly over India, Korea, Islamic Republic, Japan, South and North America, Mongolia. The distribution area also captures Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia and even Cambodia.

In nature, there are many types of bright representatives of the insect world, their classification is simply huge, and each of them prefer special places habitats and each of them has a specific role. Some species settle on those plants that have been damaged by aphids. Others can be seen on field and marsh grasses.

What does it eat?

Ladybugs are mainly insect predators. What does a ladybug eat? Favorite food - mites and plant-eating aphids. With great pleasure they eat small caterpillars, even furry ones, pupae, eggs of moths, butterflies and the Colorado potato beetle.

What do ladybugs usually eat? The diet of some species is limited only plant food: they love mycelium, pollen, flowers, fruits and sheet plates plants.

Lifestyle

Ladybugs prefer to live "alone", apart from other representatives of the species.

Only during mating season they come together to continue their lineage. They also gather together for flights and wintering.

Ladybug can be called a carnivorous insect, therefore, with the onset of the cold period, all insects living in latitudes with temperate climate, get together and fly away to warm countries.

Among insects there is a sedentary species. They do not fly away to countries with a hot and dry climate, but gather in one place and winter in huge communities of up to 400 million adults. If you calculate how much such a “ball” weighs, you can get a figure equal to several tons.

To hide from the bad climatic conditions, "suns" are hiding in the ruins of stones, they also take refuge under the fallen leaf plates of shrubs.

At good conditions and the presence of food, spotted insects can live for 1 year. Under adverse conditions, the life of insects does not exceed several months.

reproduction

The appearance of offspring depends on the species: insects breed in spring or autumn, depending on the variety and belonging to a particular species, an adult individual of a bizarre bug can lay 3-300 eggs.

Ladybug larva: transformation process

An interesting fact is that the "suns" lay their eggs near aphid settlements. The development cycle of the larva lasts no more than a week. As it develops, it feeds on aphids daily.

Full maturation occurs by the second week of development. The time is already coming when one can observe the transformation of the larva into a chrysalis. After 7 weeks, an adult is born from the pupa.

If, during growth, the insects lack the main food - aphids, to saturate their bodies, the bugs fly to the territory of the beaches. During the flight, they annoy even people with their presence. Some complain of weak bites from the seven-spotted ladybug.

Why is the ladybug called that?

The bizarre coloring became the basis for giving the insect scientific name ladybug. Among the people, a bug with bizarre inclusions is called differently. Cute nicknames indicate that people feel sympathy for this insect. For example, in the sunny Czech Republic and Slovenia it is called the “sun”, in prosperous Switzerland and Germany - the “bug of the Virgin Mary”, Latin American residents - the “cow of St. Anthony”.

It is still not known what origins Russian name this beautiful "bug of the Virgin Mary". Some scientists argue that this is due to the ability of a bright bug to secrete hemolymph ("milk") during the danger, with which they scare away predators. And “God’s” means harmless, gentle.

According to others, the insect was named so because it copes well with aphids, with its sticky secretions, thereby helping to preserve the crop.

Multi-colored bugs bring undoubted benefits. You can attract bright insects to the garden, if you can’t attract them yourself, then you can buy in a store and bring them to your site. Now many environmental companies are breeding these cute bugs, so it will not be difficult to order them and bring them to your garden, where they plant them on a prepared lawn.