Hosts or Prey
Aphids primarily
Identification
The adult lady beetle (ladybug or ladybird beetle) is 1/6 to 1/4 inch (4–6 mm) long. The wing covers are typically orange but some individuals are red. There are no spots on the wing covers except there may be 2 pale blotches immediately behind the thorax. The thorax is black and pale yellow or white. Adults are round when viewed from above and dome shaped (convex) when viewed from the side. Females have a black and white frons (area on the head between the eyes and above the mouthparts). The frons on males is mostly white.
Eggs are football shaped and about 1/25 inch (1 mm) long. They are orange to yellow and laid on end in a group. Larvae have long legs and resemble tiny alligators up to about 1/4 inch (6 mm) long. They are dark gray to black with orange or yellow spots on many segments. Pupae are oval and about 1/5 inch (5 mm) long. They occur openly with their rear end glued to plant parts and are black and orangish.
Lookalikes
Adults of C. munda, Cycloneda polita, and Cycloneda sanguinea all have orange or red wing covers with no spots except some whitish immediately behind the thorax and a thorax that is black and pale yellow or white. Cycloneda sanguinea on each side of the thorax has a pale yellow or white spot surrounded by black, which C. munda and C. polita lack. On each side of the thorax of C. munda and C. polita is a yellow or white C shape, almost a complete circle, or uncommonly a complete circle.
Cycloneda munda and C. polita can generally be distinguished by the color of their legs and wing covers. The legs of C. munda are yellowish brown and C. polita has black or dark brown legs. The wing covers of C. munda are generally orange while C. polita generally has red wing covers. However, both species can have orange or red wing covers. Expert dissection and examination of the male genitalia may be needed to reliably distinguish the species.
Life Cycle
Lady beetles develop through four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Adult females lay eggs in a group of commonly one to two dozen. After hatching larvae develop through four increasingly larger instars. Mature larvae pupate openly on plants.
Adults live longer when nectar and pollen are available for nourishment. An adult female consumes about 300 aphids during her several week life span. Each larva consumes about 400 aphids during its development. The polished lady beetle has several generations per year.
Habitat
The polished lady beetle can occur where plants are infested with aphids. Their habitat includes field and tree crops, gardens, landscapes, and wildlands. To improve biological control
- Control ants because they attack lady beetles and other natural enemies.
- Grow flowering insectary plants to provide nectar and pollen to feed adult natural enemies.
- Reduce dustiness that disrupts the activities of natural enemies (e.g., periodically hose off small plants).
- Avoid the application of broad-spectrum, persistent insecticides for all pests because they are toxic to natural enemies.
See Protecting Natural Enemies and Pollinators for more information.
Species
At least 191 species of lady beetles occur in California. These include three similar-looking Cycloneda species: C. munda, C. polita, and C. sanguinea. All of these Cycloneda species are sometimes called spotless lady beetles.
The 1985 publication The Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of America North of Mexico reports that C. munda does not occur as far west in the United States as California. But the California Academy of Sciences collection database (Monarch) documents that C. munda now occurs from at least San Diego County, California north to British Columbia.
More Information
- The California Beetle Database, Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History
- The Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of America North of Mexico, Journal of the New York Entomological Society
- Genus Cycloneda - Spotless Lady Beetles, BugGuide, Iowa State University
- Larval Systematics of the North American Cycloneda Crotch (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), Entomologica Scandinavica
- Monarch, collections database, California Academy of Sciences
- The New World Genus Cycloneda Crotch (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): Historical Review, New Diagnosis, New Generic and Specific Synonyms, and an Improved Key to North American Species, Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington
Scientific classification:
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Coleoptera
- Family: Coccinellidae
