Do you really know anything about ladybugs except in spring as they appear in bags at your local nursery, garden centers or gardening catalogs as being a beneficial addition to your garden.  Buy a bag and let them lose and all your problems will go away.  Wrong!  True, ladybugs are very beneficial to your garden in controlling your unwanted pests; however, they also require some attention to keep them happy in your garden.  It is in this light that I present a more in depth look at ladybugs.

Ladybugs(coccinellid) are small insects, ranging from 1 mm to 10 mm (0.04 to 0.4 inches), and are commonly yellow, orange, or scarlet with small black spots on their wing covers, with black legs, head and antennae. A very large number of coccinellid species are mostly, or entirely, black, grey, or brown and may be difficult for non-entomologists to recognize as coccinellids. Conversely, there are many small beetles that are easily mistaken for coccinellids, such as the tortoise beetles.

Many people tend to shy away from bugs and insects, but the ladybug is appreciated by almost everyone. Ladybugs, or lady beetles, are a very beneficial group of insects. Both the adults and larvae are predators. They are known for their diet of aphids, but will eat many other pests such as soft-scale insects, spider mites, mealybugs, and the eggs of many others. A single larvae will eat about 400 medium size aphids during its development to pupal stage. An adult will eat about 300 aphids before it lays its eggs. Approximately 3 to 10 aphids are eaten for each egg laid, and a female will lay from 50 to 300 eggs in her lifetime. More than 5000 aphids may be eaten by a single adult ladybug in its lifetime.

Ladybugs have a very characteristic shape, like half a pea. The head is covered by a hood so is concealed from above. Wing covers are thought to always be red with black spots, but may also be
white, yellow, pink, orange, or black, depending on species. Like many brightly colored insects, ladybugs are distasteful to predators. When disturbed, they may secrete an odorous fluid to warn enemies of their bad flavor.

The life cycle of this insect varies depending on temperature, humidity, and food supply. It usually takes 3 to 4 weeks from egg to adult, but in cooler weather, it may take up to 6 weeks. In spring, overwintering adults find food then lay their eggs. The tiny bright yellow eggs are deposited in clusters of 10 to 50 eggs each. Eggs hatch in 3 to 5 days and the larvae feed on their prey for 2 to 3 weeks, then pupate. The larvae are elongate, somewhat flattened, and covered with tiny spines. They resemble tiny 6-legged alligators that are blue-black with orange spots. Adults merge from the pupae in 7 o 10 days. There can be 5 or 6 generations per year.  In autumn, adults congregate to hibernate in plant refuse and crevices.

If there is plenty of prey, ladybugs will stay around, lay eggs, and become effective aphid predators. Adults tend to move on once prey gets scarce, but larvae, which have' no wings, are less likely to go away.

During the Middle Ages, swarms of pests were destroying crops, so farmers prayed to the Virgin Mary for help. Soon after, ladybugs came and ate the pests and saved the crops. The farmers called the bugs "Beetles of Our Lady", which eventually became "ladybugs". In many countries these insects are thought to be', good luck, probably because of how they salve so many crops from pests. Did you know that in the' early 1900's aphids almost destroyed California's, fruit crop? Ladybugs were imported from Australia to destroy them and save the crops! These beneficial insects are now here to stay!

A common myth is that the number of spots on the insect's back indicates its age.