Family Coccinellidae - Lady Beetles

Ladybug - Probably the most common name used by the general public (though not technically correct as they aren't bugs)

Ladybird (especially in Canada and the U.K.)

Coccinelle (French)

käksə′nelə′dē (kox-ih-NELL-a-DEE)

Coccinellidae Latreille 1807

A group with many interesting biological, cultural, and linguistic associations:

>480 spp. in 61 genera in our area(2), ~6000 spp. in 360 genera total(3)

Non-native lady beetles are frequently introduced for biocontrol, so the number of species may continue to rise.(4)

Selected local faunas: ~160 spp. in Canada(5), 96 in FL(6), 190 in CA(7), 67 in NH(8), 63 in OK(9), 81 in IA(10), 49 in AR(11), 75 in AB(12), 71 in LA(13)

Family Coccinellidae Latreille, 1807

Subfamily STICHOLOTIDINAE Weiss, 1901

Tribe MICROWEISEINI Leng, 1920

Very small (1-1.5mm), brown or black. Strongly convex (dome-shaped), appearing hemispherical to spherical.

Tribe SERANGIINI Pope, 1962

Tribe CEPHALOSCYMNINI Gordon, 1985

Tribe CARINODULINI Gordon, Pakaluk & Slipinski, 1989

Elongated, narrow shape - dissimilar from other lady beetles.

Subfamily SCYMNINAE Mulsant, 1846

Adults: Usually small, oval to oblong, highly convex (dome-shaped). Larvae: usually covered with white wax that may form long "hairy" tufts.

Tribe SCYMNILLINI Casey, 1899

Small, black, sometimes with red spots. Dorsal surface smooth, pubescent (having short, fine hairs), or both.

Tribe STETHORINI Dobzhansky, 1924

Small, dark brown or black, dorsal surface pubescent.

Tribe SCYMNINI Mulsant, 1846

Round, oval, or oblong. Brown or black; may have brown, yellow, or red markings. Dorsal surface and eye pubescent. Larvae covered in waxy white tufts.

Tribe DIOMINI Gordon, 1899

Tribe SELVADIINI Gordon, 1985

Tribe HYPERASPIDINI Mulsant, 1846

Round, oval, or oblong. Blue eyes. Bold markings, often colorful: black or dark brown with contrasting spots, stripes, wavy lines. One species metallic blue.

Tribe BRACHIACANTHINI Mulsant, 1850

Oval or oblong. Blue eyes. Dark with yellow to red or white markings (spots, triangles, diamonds); or yellow to red with black markings.

Tribe CRYPTOGNATHINI Mulsant, 1850

Subfamily CHILOCORINAE Mulsant, 1846

Round, oval, or shield-shaped. Profile strongly convex, explanate (helmet-like, with a flared "rim"). Often black with red or orange spots; sometimes red or orange with or without spots; two species metallic blue-green. Larvae with long, multi-branched "spines."

Tribe CHILOCORINI Mulsant 1846

Subfamily COCCIDULINAE Mulsant, 1846

All species pubescent; most species round or oval, one elongated. Most species red, brown, or black; one species blue, one species yellow.

Tribe COCCIDULINI Mulsant, 1846

Tribe NOVIINI Mulsant, 1850

Tribe EXOPLECTRINI Crotch, 1874

Tribe AZYINI Mulsant, 1850

Subfamily COCCINELLINAE Latreille, 1807

Tribe COCCINELLINI Latreille, 1807

Many of the most familiar lady beetles. Oval or oblong, sometimes tapering to a point. Usually brightly colored with black markings; or black with colorful markings; a few are gray with black markings. Larvae: Dark, "alligator-like," often with colorful markings.

Tribe HALYZIINI Mulsant, 1846

Small to very small (1-3 mm). Pronotum transparent. White or light brown with brown, black, and sometimes orange spots. Larvae: light gray, may have black and orange markings.

Subfamily EPILACHNINAE Ganglbauer, 1899

Eat plants, unlike most other lady beetles. Round to oval, highly convex, orange or yellow with dark spots. Larvae: yellow with long spines, with reduced legs ("slug-like").

Tribe EPILACHNINI Costa, 1849

Released but not established: Ceratomegilla undecimnotata, Oenopia conglobata, Scymnus frontalis all widespread Palaearctic spp.)(4)

Adults: 1-10 mm; larvae up to twice as long as adults

From 0.8 to 18 mm (0.0315 to 0.708 inches) according to Wikipedia

Red lady beetles with black spots are among the most easily-recognized insects. There are many other colors and patterns, though, which can be hard to identify. The following physical features will identify all lady beetles, no matter what color they are.

Larvae [key to genera and selected species in(14)]

Larvae are very different-looking, and may not be recognized as lady beetles. They are soft-bodied, flattened and elongated ("alligator-shaped"). Predatory species have fully-developed legs, so they don't look as much like worms as many other beetle larvae. Larvae go through 4 instars, that is they molt three times before pupating; the instars can be fairly different. Many are gray or black and may have colorful markings (A). Others have waxy white tufts, resembling caterpillars or mealybugs (B). Plant-eating larvae are yellow with long spines (C).

A. B. C.

Worldwide, including all of North America.

Anywhere with suitable food. Usually outdoors, but in cold weather large groups may enter houses.

Active adults and larvae are present from spring to fall. Some adults can survive cold winters, but are usually inactive. All life stages present year-round in the south.

Most lady beetles are predatory, eating a wide variety of other insects. Prey includes aphids (A, B), mealybugs, scale insects, fly larvae (C), and small caterpillars. They also eat insect eggs (D) and pupae (E) - even those of other lady beetles (F).

A. B. C.

D. E. F.

Some lady beetles are plant-eating, however, and can be destructive in gardens (A). Others consume fungus, such as mildew and plant molds (B). Predatory species may supplement their diet with pollen (C).

A. B. C.

Non-prey foods are an integral component of the diets of most predaceous coccinellids. Under field conditions, numerous coccinellids consume nectar, honeydew, pollen, fruit, vegetation, and fungus. These non-prey foods are used by coccinellids to increase survival when prey is scarce, reduce mortality during diapause, fuel migration, and enhance reproductive capacity. Each of these non-prey foods has unique nutritional and defensive characteristics that influence its suitability for lady beetles. (15)

Larvae go through 4 different instars before pupating and finally becoming adults. Some larvae have tufts of white wax on the surface that make them look like mealybugs.

Their food is usually similar to that of the adults, and in the predatory species they're often important as pest controls.

Before becoming adults, they go through an immobile stage with a shell-like skin. They shed this pupal case to emerge as adults.

Many species gather in large numbers to hibernate. Some gather along lake shores, particularly in the spring and fall (16)(17)(12)

see BugGuide Eggs, Larvae, and Pupa info page for more information including current images of species.

Identification within the family (at least for adults) often depends on patterns in the pronotum (the area in front of the wings/"shell", but behind the head). A view of your ladybird from the front will help with ID.

Non-native Coccinellids – Lady Beetles (as of 6/3/2015)

Some 179 coccinellid species have been introduced to the U.S. and Canada; At least 27 of these non-native species have become established.(18)(4)(19)

By 1985, more than 100 species of exotic lady beetles had been introduced into California(20)

Some lady beetles, particularly Harmonia axyridis, serve as hosts to parasitic Laboulbeniales fungi, resulting in this appearance (click on thumbs to see comments):

Most other beetles have longer antennae, but some are superficially similar:

Acorn, J. 2007. Ladybugs of Alberta, Finding the Spots and Connecting the Dots. University of Alberta Press, Edmonton. xxx + 169 pp. (12)

Chapin, J.B. 1974. The Coccinellidae of Louisiana (Insecta: Coleoptera). Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 682: 2-87.

Ellis, D.R., D.R. Prokrym, and R.G. Adams. 1999. Exotic lady beetle survey in northeastern United States: Hippodamia variegata and Propylea quatuordecimpunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Entomological News 110: 73–84.

Doutt, R.L. 1958. Vice, virtue and the vedalia. Bulletin of the Entomological Society of America 4: 119–123.

Lee, R.E., Jr. 1980. Aggregation of lady beetles on the shores of lakes (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). American Midland Naturalist, 104(2): 295-304. (16)

Fauske, G.M., P.P. Tinerella, and D.A. Rider. 2003. A list of the lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of North Dakota with new records from North Dakota and Minnesota. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 76: 38-46.

Gabel, M.L., P.J. Johnson, G.E. Larson, D.J. Ode, H.A. Downing, and G.M. Kostel. 2007. South Dakota’s natural history collections: an endangered teaching and research resource. Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science 86: 71-82.

Gordon, R.D. 1985. The Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of America North of Mexico. Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 93(1): 1-912. (18)

Gordon, R.D. and N. Vandenberg. 1991. Field guide to recently introduced species of coccinellidae (Coleoptera) in North America, with a revised key to north American genera of coccinellini. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 93: 845-867. (4)

Harmon, J.P., E.J. Stephens, and J. Losey. 2007. The decline of native coccinellids (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) in the United States and Canada. Journal of Insect Conservation 11: 85–94.

Hesler, L.S. 2009. An annotated checklist of the lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of Iowa, U.S.A. Insecta Mundi 0091: 1-10. (10)

Hesler, L.S., and R.W. Kieckhefer. 2008a. Status of exotic and previously common native coccinellids (Coleoptera) in South Dakota landscapes. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 81: 29-49.

Hesler, L.S., and R.W. Kieckhefer. 2008b. An annotated and updated species list of the Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of South Dakota. Coleopterists Bulletin 62: 443-454.

Hesler, L.S., and J.D. Petersen. 2008. Survey for previously common native Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) in the northern Great Plains. The Great Lakes Entomologist 41: 60-72.

Johnson, R.H. 1910. Determinate evolution in the color-pattern of the lady-beetles. Carnegie Institution of Washington, Publication No. 122. iv + 104 pp. (21)

Larson, D.J. 2013. Key to lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of Saskatchewan. Entomological Society of Saskatchewan. 1-37.

Losey, J.E., J.E. Perlman, and E.R. Hoebeke. 2007. Citizen scientist rediscovers rare nine-spotted lady beetle, Coccinella novemnotata, in eastern North America. Journal of Insect Conservation 11: 415-417.

Lundgren, J.G. 2009. Nutritional aspects of non-prey foods in the life histories of predaceous Coccinellidae. Biological Control 51(2): 294–305. (15)

Majka, C.G. & S. Robinson. 2009. Hyperaspis and Brachiacantha (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): two poorly known genera of native lady beetles in the Maritime Provinces. Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society, 5: 3-11. Full PDF

Obrycki, J.J., and T.J. Kring. 1998. Predaceous Coccinellidae in biological control. Annual Review of Entomology 43: 295-321.

Obrycki, J.J., N.C. Elliott, and K.L. Giles. 2000. Coccinellid introductions: potential for and evaluation of nontarget effects. Pp. 127-145. In: P.A. Follett and J.J. Duan (eds.). Nontarget effects of biological control. Kluwer Academic Press, Boston, MA. 316 pp.

Obrycki, J.J., W.C. Bailey, C.R. Stoltenow, B. Puttler, and C.E. Carlson. 1987. Recovery of the seven-spotted lady beetle, Coccinella septempunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), in Iowa and Missouri. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 60: 584-588.

Riddick, E.W., T.E. Cottrell, and K.A. Kidd. 2009. Natural enemies of the Coccinellidae: parasites, pathogens, and parasitoids. Biological Control 51(2): 306–312. (22)

Rouse, E.P., and J.B. Chapin. 1976. A checklist of the Coccinellidae of Arkansas. Proceedings of the Arkansas Academy of Science 30: 76-77. (11)

Shaefer, P.W., R.J. Dysart, and H.B. Specht. 1987. North American distribution of Coccinella septempunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and its mass appearance in coastal Delaware. Environmental Entomology 16: 368-373.

Stehr, W.C. 1930. The Coccinellidae (ladybird beetles) of Minnesota. University of Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station, Technical Bulletin 75. 54 pp.

Wheeler, A.G., Jr., and E.R. Hoebeke. 1995. Coccinella novemnotata in northeastern North America: historical occurrence and current status (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 97: 701-716.

Wingo, C.W. 1952. The Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of the upper Mississippi Basin. Iowa State Journal of Science 27: 15-53.

Wise, I.L., W.J. Turnock, and R.E. Roughley. 2001. New records of coccinellid species for the Province of Manitoba. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Manitoba 57: 5-10.

Lady Beetles of Ontario - Marshall

Ladybugs of Maine - Alyokhin et al.

Ladybugs of South Dakota - Hesler et al. (2010)

Checklist of the lady beetles (Coccinellidae) of Arkansas - Rouse & Chapin (1980)

Lady Beetles (Coccinellidae) of South-Central U.S. - Quinn (2018)

The Lost Ladybug Project (LLP) (23)

Ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) recently immigrant to Florida - Thomas & Blanchard (2013)(19)

Morphology - interactive diagram

Eastern Lady Beetles - a work-in-progress field guide to lady beetles of eastern North America.