I’ve seen quite a few ladybugs this year – love them! I can remember when I was a kid (a long time ago!), I would love to catch ladybugs and promptly release them! Just loved the challenge of catching them. Don’t kill them because they are very beneficial insects!
Features:  Ladybugs are less than 1/2 inch and round. This type is red with black spots.
Eggs:  Ladybugs lay eggs on the underside of leaves. Depending on the type of ladybug, the color of the eggs can range from white to yellow to orange to red. The eggs are longer then they are wide.
Larvae:  After the egg stage, it turns into this larvae with a big exoskeleton that looks nothing like a ladybug. Since this is the first year that I saw the larvae, I had no idea whether it was a good or bad insect.  I used my Picture Insect App to determine that the insect in the picture was a ladybug larvae. After this stage, it molts and becomes a pupae and then a cute ladybug. Molting means that it sheds the exoskeleton. Pupating means that it stays till and transforms into a ladybug. How cool is that!
Beneficial:Â Â Ladybugs and their larvae are beneficial because they kill and eat several bad bugs including aphids, scale and mealybugs.
