Thursday Thirteen XI: The Ladybug Edition
T H U R S D A Y T H I R T E E N
We have been besieged by ladybugs suddenly.
Upon research, it is their time to come out.
I have compiled 13 facts to better acquaint
ourselves with the sometime pest.
They sure are cute, though.
Ladybug Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Coccinellidae
Genus: Hippodamia
- The ladybug, commonly called the Asian lady beetle, is a pest as well as a beneficial insect.
- Ladybugs belong to the beetle family Coccinellidae which means “little sphere”. There are probably as many as 4,000 species found world-wide and over 350 kinds are found in North America. Most common Northeastern species can be identified by the pattern of spots on their elytra (flight wing covers)
- Ladybugs go through 4 different stages in its life cycle. Those stages are: Egg, (7-21 days) Larva, (7-21 days) Pupa, (7-21 days) and Adult. (3-9 months)
- They are really only a pest by their presence.
- Ladybugs do not feed on or damage anything in the home.
- Ladybugs do not carry diseases or sting, nor can they breed indoors. However, when large numbers of them take up residence in a home, they will crawl all over the walls, windows, light fixtures and any other surfaces.
- Asian beetles tend to be attracted to lighter colored buildings and especially to those that are illuminated by the sun (typically the south or southwest side). Darker colors or buildings in the shade are less likely to have problems. After spending the winter months tucked away in a wall void or other secluded place, they have simply forgotten how they got in.
- Once ladybugs have become established in the home, there aren’t a lot of treatment options. There are not a lot of recommended chemical measures at this point. The easiest way to remove ladybugs, once they are indoors, is with a vacuum cleaner.
- Lady beetles have some interesting means of protection. Their red or orange and black coloration warns birds that they would not make a very tasty meal. Birds learn that insects that are red and black or yellow and black usually sting or taste bad and hence they leave such insects alone.
- Ladybugs, of course, can’t sting, but they probably do taste bad. They also will “play dead” when in danger. Many predators will not eat an insect that doesn’t move. Also, ladybugs produce a bad smelling odor, perhaps by way of a fluid from joints in the legs, which may help to protect them.
- The larva of ladybugs is a rather fearsome looking creature. It is somewhat alligator-shaped and covered with bumps and spines. In most species the larva is a fierce predator which you might guess if you look at its sicle-shaped jaws. Despite the small size of the creature, it can produce a distinctly felt nip on one’s finger if handled.
- You can’t tell a ladybug’s age by it’s spots. The ladybug’s average life span is only one year. Different types of ladybugs have different types of spots but you’d need to look through a microscope to see the difference on some of the varieties.
- Not all ladybugs are ladies. Whether they are male or female, they are still called ladybugs. Female ladybugs are usually a bit larger than male ladybugs.
Some pics from a recent laybug encounter in the boys’ room:
(click thumbnail to enlarge)
This entry was posted on Thursday, November 15th, 2007 at 3:29 am and is filed under NaBloPoMo, Thursday Thirteen. You can follow any comments to this post through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
November 15th, 2007 at 4:40 am
Interesting read. My backyard is filled with ladybugs in the summer. I had no idea that their life span was only a year.
November 15th, 2007 at 4:45 am
I’ve never seen ladybugs get into the house like that in such numbers!
November 15th, 2007 at 7:44 am
I love ladybugs! I didn’t realize it was their “season.” Intersting M. And, on S’s eyes, you posted about “windows into the soul” just before I was going to say that. Great minds think alike?
November 15th, 2007 at 7:50 am
we get them every year too. We have to tape our windows shut and run in and out ofthe doors real fast . Crazy. The first year we lived here and had them we did not know it was going to happen and our house was full. MY hubby was going crazy. I am still finding dead ladybugs sometimes when I get into boxes and things that have not been touched in years.
November 15th, 2007 at 8:18 am
Interesting! those are many lady bugs there!:) Reminds me of the cartoon movie Bugs Life:) Happy TT!
November 15th, 2007 at 8:24 am
where did they come from?
November 15th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Great post. I am glad to learn they are harmless. Our daughter plays with them. We have them in our home and they tend to congregate in one corner. Ours like group therapy…lol
Terrific Thursday Thirteen!
My TT is posted.
Have a wonderful day!
Happy TT’ing!
*^_^
(=’:'=)
(”)_ (”)Š
Raggedy
November 15th, 2007 at 8:26 am
Oh and they are always way up on the ceiling when they hold that meeting.
November 15th, 2007 at 8:51 am
I like ladybugs. I’m always attracted to cute things with ladybug design/pattern. Thanks for sharing all these interesting information. I enjoyed learning new things about such a cool and pretty insect.
November 15th, 2007 at 9:04 am
AFF: We do have great, like minds!! :D
Grace: Georgia is one of the states that released ladybugs to control aphid populations. They did this in the late 70’s/early 80’s.
Raggedy: There have been so many more that if I got pictures of all of the “ladybug meetings” I could fill up 3 TT’s!! LOL
November 15th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Do you live in SC? My house has been crawling with lady bugs for the past few days.
happy tt!
November 15th, 2007 at 10:01 am
Geez I feel your pain! When I lived in SC, in my grandparents former house they would hatch about this time of the year. There were some years it was so bad it was like some creepy movie!
I know they are alleged to be “good” insects but to me no bug is a good bug!
Shudder!
The Pink Flamingo
November 15th, 2007 at 10:12 am
I hate these bugs. We had a couple of really bad seasons with them, vacuuming every night just to keep them under control. We ended up asking several exterminators for a solution and one said he could take care of it.
That was 2 years ago and we haven’t seen them since. I’m guessing what they used was safe, no one is growing horns or anything.
November 15th, 2007 at 10:17 am
jenn: Georgia
SJ Reidhead: I hear ya!! LOL They are officially “pest”.
Chuck: It’s not scary movie bad, and I don’t know what I’ll do if it get there. I heard washing the side of the house with a soap mixture would help. Yeah, I can see me on a ladder with a bucket of soap water, washing the side of the house. Yeah, I can see that! NOT!
November 15th, 2007 at 10:32 am
I love ladybugs…but of course I have never been infested. Sounds like a ladybug infestation is probably the best kind. You get to admire the pretty colors.
Great List!
November 15th, 2007 at 10:36 am
Holy Ladybugs Batman! They look HUGE! I hope it’s just the angle that the pictures are taken…I’d be afraid they’d eat me whole!
November 15th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
EEEEEwwww. I had no idea you could suffer from an infestation of lady bugs inside your own house! How are the kids handling it?
November 15th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
MamaDB: At first they thought they were cool. Now they are annoyed.
November 15th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
You know I noticed that they are everywhere right now!
November 15th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
Awww, sorry the ladybugs are annoying you. I have an affinity for them…
At any rate, I have never been infested by them so who knows how I would react!
Fascinating information about them tho. Happy TT
November 15th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
Wow I have never had ladybugs inside my home. Happy TT and thanks for stopping by.
November 15th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
They are so cute…I guess that’s when one sees just one or two of them. I didn’t know they could actually invade your home! and the best weapon is a vacuum cleaner!
I learn something every day. Happy thirteening :)
November 15th, 2007 at 2:02 pm
Hi Mishelle, I have never seen ladybugs inside of a house..Thanks for all of the info on them..I think that I would rather have them in my house and no roaches….Thanks for your visit to my place, Baba
November 15th, 2007 at 3:06 pm
I have noticed being in the South that I too have had them come in record numbers.Those facts about ladybugs were pretty interesting.
November 15th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Hey excellent idea. They are crawling all over our house (inside and out) here too! This was actually so interesting to read. It’s always nice to learn SOMETHING now and then from a T13. :)
November 15th, 2007 at 5:18 pm
Oh, very interesting! I love ladybugs–in fact, they’re the only kind of bug I will voluntarily touch. :)
November 15th, 2007 at 5:42 pm
Lady bugs are so cool. Very informative list. :D
Happy TT!
November 15th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
I think the only thing that eats the Asian Beetle (aka Lady bug cousin) is my baby! LOL
Happy TT~
November 15th, 2007 at 6:08 pm
Now I want to see a picture of a baby ladybug…I hope I can track one down you made me curous. fun list and boy I learned a bunch of stuff.
Thanks!
Candy
November 15th, 2007 at 6:18 pm
Ladybirds* are a very handy predator. They are bred for farmers to use to control green fly and other pests without insecticides. I was always told that spotting the first one of the year was good luck as a kid and a yellow one good luck any time.
Great TT :-)
* don’t worry it’s just a British thing I can’t type ladybug without wincing
November 15th, 2007 at 9:21 pm
Some Lady Bugs (actually, Japanese Beetle variety) don’t “sting”, but do bite.
November 15th, 2007 at 9:33 pm
perfect timing for this list - my house is infested with lady bugs!
November 15th, 2007 at 10:30 pm
Very informative post. Thank you.
I have very good childhood memories of ladybugs. ;-)
November 15th, 2007 at 10:44 pm
Oh, lovely. Ladybugs make me smile. So, too, did this post.
November 16th, 2007 at 1:40 am
Interesting list. Everyone likes ladybugs!
November 16th, 2007 at 2:42 am
In England, they’re called ladybirds.
I could NEVER kill one of those little cuties.
If we keep killing off insects because we don’t like the look of them, we are going to WRECK the environment. Ladybugs have a crucial role in the ecology. I LOVED this post.
November 16th, 2007 at 1:44 pm
Looks a little like my kitchen. We’ve been invaded by them and I posted about it last Friday.
November 17th, 2007 at 6:10 am
My mother gets legions of them drawn to the inside of her skylight every year. She has to vacuum them out, like your post mentioned. We don’t tell the kids!