Hosts or Prey
Aphids primarily
Identification
The adult lady beetle (ladybug or ladybird beetle) is 1/6 to almost 5/16 inch (4–6.5 mm) long with shiny yellowish red wing covers. 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. The elongate larvae have long legs and resemble tiny alligators up to about 1/4 inch (6 mm) long. They are blackish with orange or yellowish markings.
Pupae occur glued openly to plant parts. They are oval and about 1/4 inch (6 mm) long. They are initially pale then become black and brown or orange.
Lookalikes
Adults of Cycloneda munda, Cycloneda polita, and C. sanguinea all have orange or red wing covers with no distinct spots except some whitish immediately behind the thorax. Their thorax is black and pale yellowish or white. Cycloneda sanguinea on each side of the thorax has a pale yellowish 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 ring, or uncommonly a complete circle.
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. Spotless lady beetle has several generations per year.
Habitat
The spotless lady beetle can occur most places 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 3 similar-looking Cycloneda species: C. munda, C. polita, and C. sanguinea. All these Cycloneda species are sometimes called spotless lady beetles.
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 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
