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LinkedInPosts Tagged: Coccinellidae
Becoming a Lady Beetle, aka Ladybug, on Labor Day
If you're an entomologist, an agriculturist, a gardener or an insect enthusiast, you've probably seen the life cycle of a lady beetle, aka ladybug: from the egg to the larva to the pupa to the adult. You may have missed the pupal stage when the adult emerges--or mistaken the pupal case...
Welcome to the world! A lady beetle, aka ladybug, emerges from its pupal case. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The lady beetle, aka ladybug, heads up the leaf, leaving its pupal case behind. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A newly emerged lady beetle, aka ladybug, peers at the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Hey, I'm Eating as Fast as I Can!
Have you ever seen the larva of a lady beetle (aka ladybug) dining on an aphid? Lights! Camera! Action! So here is this charming little immature lady beetle chowing down on an oleander aphid that has the audacity to infest the milkweed in our pollinator garden. Chomp! Crunch! Slurp! And then...
An immature lady beetle (larvae) chowing down on an oleander aphid. This photo was taken on a milkweed plant in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A well-fed adult lady beetle (aka ladybug) ignores a fat Oleander aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Incredible Aphid-Eating Machines
Just call them the "incredible aphid-eating machines." That would be the lady beetles, commonly known as ladybugs (although they are not bugs; they're beetles belonging to the family Coccinellidae, and they're not all "ladies"--some are male!). How many aphids can a lady beetle eat? Scientists...
Lady beetle larva dining on aphids on milkweed, UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A lady beetle, aka ladybug, tracks down more prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Luck Be a Lady (Beetle)
Overhead in the lady's restroom of a restaurant at the Sausalito marina: Mother to daughter: "There's a lady in here." Daughter: "A lady? Well, why wouldn't there be a lady in here? This is a lady's restroom." Mother: "Look right over there, on the wall." Indeed, there was a "lady" in the...
A lady beetle, newly rescued from the bathroom of a restaurant in Marin County, crawls on an Iceland poppy in a Solano County bee garden. Freedom! (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Which way is up? Which way is down? A rescued lady beetle exploring its surroundings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Fly Away Home
Who wouldn't like to have a lady beetle, aka ladybug? Although they're commonly called "ladybugs," entomologists call them "lady beetles." That's because they're beetles, not bugs. Nevertheless, who wouldn't like to have one? The California Grange traditionally gives away lady beetles at the...
A lady beetle crawls on an Iceland poppy stem. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Just as the grass looks greener on the other side, the aphids look fatter on the other side. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sight not commonly seen: a lady beetle about to take flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A cluster of 24 eggs that a lady beetle deposited on a Passiflora leaf. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
