Three-spotted Lady Beetle larva - Axion tripustulatum

thanks for this photo

A little critter just like this landed on my desk at work (after brushing past my forehead). Thanks to your photo I was able to identify it. I brought it home and took some photos of my own.

… Lightning, 11 November, 2014 - 7:29pm

Moved

Moved from ID Request.

… Abigail Parker, 4 August, 2013 - 3:01pm

Three-spotted Lady Beetle larva

Axion tripustulatum, the Three-spotted Lady Beetle. The adults look like this:

… Abigail Parker, 4 August, 2013 - 3:00pm

Lady Beetle

I appreciate the id of this very much! I have never seen one before! Thank you for your help!

… Lostinthewilderness, 5 August, 2013 - 5:56am

it's a great find!

This is the first larva of the species to be posted on BugGuide. Keep an eye out for adults in about a week, too!

… Abigail Parker, 5 August, 2013 - 7:32am

The beetle watch is on!

Abigail-what a thrill when I read your message-Thank you so much! I have been watching it since I first saw it but didn't know what to expect...It's body position was first straight up and down, head toward the sky, then one day it rotated left and now it is laying with it's head to the right of it's original position...I will keep watch to see what happens next-it is so fascinating! Thank you so much for your help!

… Lostinthewilderness, 6 August, 2013 - 12:28pm

sounds like it's getting ready to pupate

If you suddenly see something that looks like this, it's the beetle's pupa:

And if you do, please take a photo! It would be great to get a record of this species' development.

… Abigail Parker, 6 August, 2013 - 12:51pm

Question

Hello Abigail! How do I upload an updated photo in this thread? The larva's head has turned from red to brown and now it is upside down but it hasn't busted out yet....Thanks for your help and interest.

… Lostinthewilderness, 8 August, 2013 - 11:51am

adding images

In the line of links right above the copyright line of your submission, there's a link saying "add images." Click on that, it'll take you to a new image upload page that will be linked to the first two images you already have. The thumbnails for each image will display together, too. You can add a virtually unlimited number of images to a single original submission.

… Abigail Parker, 8 August, 2013 - 12:41pm

Update

The larva has now changed to a dark color-this only several hours after the 2nd photo posted.

… Lostinthewilderness, 8 August, 2013 - 7:50pm

hm, this doesn't look like typical pupation

I wonder if this larva was parasitized, actually...turning dark colors and not assuming the typical curved prepupal shape is unusual. I think we may not see anything come out of this, unfortunately!

Do keep an eye on it, in case it does indeed pupate. And even if it doesn't, the species is obviously in your area so keep an eye out for larvae, pupae, and adults!

… Abigail Parker, 9 August, 2013 - 7:44am

Update

Hi Abigail! I have watched this and sadly it hasn't changed since my last photo. I will keep an eye out to try to find more-thanks for all your help. I had so hoped to see it change!

… Lostinthewilderness, 5 September, 2013 - 5:14am

larvae are still "in season" in FL

Someone submitted an A. tripustulatum larva from Florida yesterday, so they should definitely still be around. Good luck finding more!

… Abigail Parker, 5 September, 2013 - 12:38pm