Ladybug
Ladybug / Seven-Spot Ladybird Facts
| Size | 0.2-0.3 in (5-8 mm) |
| Speed | Up to 37 mph (60 km/h) |
| Weight | Up to 0.03 oz. (1 g) |
| Lifespan | A few month |
| Food | Aphids and scale insects |
| Predators | Birds, ants, lizards, spiders |
| Habitat | Europe, Asia, northern Africa |
| Order | Beetles |
| Family | Ladybug |
| Scientific name | Coccinella septempunctata |
| Characteristics | Semispherical body; many species have black spots |
Main Characteristics
Ladybugs are small, flying beetles. They have a hemispherical body and most of them have spots. There are over 250 species.
Species
Seven-Spot Ladybug
The seven-spot ladybug is the best-known ladybug in Germany. Its wings are bright red and have three black spots each. The seventh spot is centered at the top edge of the wings. Size and shape of the spot is always slightly different.
The Asian Ladybeetle
The Asian ladybug is becoming more and more common in Germany. It eats five times as many lice as the seven-spot ladybug. The Asian species also multiplies very quickly and is therefore increasingly displacing the seven-spot beetle.
How Do You Tell a Seven-Spot from an Asian Ladybeetle?
The Asian ladybug does'n have seven, but 19 spots. On its head, it has a typical black drawing in the form of the letter "M". The seven-spot ladybug has no patterns on its head.
Habitat and Distribution
Ladybugs live in Africa, Asia, America, Australia. Their habitat is forests, meadows, moors, heaths, parks and gardens. They prefer warm climates. The colder a region is, the fewer ladybug species there are.
Anatomy and Appearance
Spots
Does the number of dots show the age of a ladybug? "Seven Dots? Seven Years old! Right?" Lots of people believe that the number of spots on a ladybug’s back tells its age. But that's a common misconception. The spots have nothing to do with the age. Wether 2, 4, 7, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 18, 19, 22, 24 spots, or none at all - these are all different ladybug species. They also have different colors depending on the species. They are not always red, but can also be yellow, orange, red, brown or even black.
Senses and Abilities
Speed
Ladybugs fly at speeds of up to 60 km/h. With enough tailwind, they can cover distances of 120 km in one go. They often let themselves be carried by the wind, but find it difficult to change direction because their wings are too weak to do so.
Importance for the Ecosystem
Ladybugs are beneficials. They're not only popular as good luck charms. They are particularly popular with gardeners because they eat pests. Seven-spot ladybirds eat 20-50 lice per day. Over a lifetime, several thousand end up in their stomach.
From here you find infos written by animalfunfacts fan Lara O.!
Enemies and Threats
What Do They Do When Threatened?
The color red is a warning signal for other animals, which the ladybug uses to say: “Watch out, I’m poisonous!” If it feels threatened by an ant, for example, the ladybug will release an unpleasant smelling, yellow liquid from its knee. It also plays dead.
Behavior
Winter
Adult beetles often spend the winter huddled in large groups under rocks, bark, grass or moss. Also, they often seek shelter in apartments, basements and window frames.
Reproduction
Eggs
The female lays up to 400 eggs in their lifetime. These are 0.01 to 0.08 inches (0.4 to 2 mm) in size. They look for plants with many aphids living on them and attach the eggs to the underside of leaves.
Larvae
It takes a ladybug 30-60 days to develop from an egg to a full-grown red ladybug. During this development, they shed their skin several times. First of all, ravenous larvae hatch from the yellow eggs.
Pupae
After a few weeks, they stop eating and use a sticky liquid to attach themselves to a plant. They become stiff and stop moving. They “pupate”. Inside, the ladybug is developing. They shed again and the adult beetle appears after around a week. It’s still a little yellow in color to begin with.
These facts were submitted by animalfunfacts.net fan Lara O. Thanks!
