Two-spot ladybird
The two-spot ladybird is a small ladybird that is usually red with one black spot on each wing case. But it loves to dress up: some are black with four or six red spots instead. You can always spot it by the two little white dots on its head.
How fast is it?
Fun facts
Its belly and legs are completely black, which helps tell it apart from look-alikes.
Its larva looks nothing like a ladybird. It is long, grey and soft, with six legs and no wings.
The baby bites its way out of the egg.
Some aphids have soldier aphids that try to fight off two-spot ladybirds to protect their family.
In North America it comes in extra patterns, even with no spots or with stripes.
Most asked questions about Two-spot ladybird
?How many spots does a two-spot ladybird have?
Usually two black spots on red, but some are black with four or six red spots.
?What do two-spot ladybirds eat?
Aphids and other small insects, both as larvae and as grown-ups.
?Are two-spot ladybirds good for the garden?
Yes. They eat aphids that harm plants, and people even use them to protect crops.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Adalia bipunctata
- Named by
- Linnaeus, 1758
- Group
- Ladybirds
- Family
- Coccinellidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Coleoptera > Coccinellidae
- Lives on
- Europe, Asia, North America
- Also known as
- Two-spotted ladybug, Two-spotted lady beetle
Where the facts come from
- Adalia bipunctata (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Matthew Vosper. CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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