Learn interesting ladybug facts, including what bad bugs ladybugs eat and why you want this charming insect in your backyard.
7 Fascinating Ladybug Facts You Didn’t Know
Ladybug Facts: Do Spots Reveal Age?
They can have as many as 16 spots, but some ladybugs have no spots at all. One of the most commonly believed ladybug facts is that you can tell their age by their number of spots, but this is a myth.
Check out 11 pictures that will change how you see bugs.
Ladybug vs Asian Lady Beetle
While most ladybugs are good, there is one nonnative species that people don’t like. The Asian lady beetle was introduced in California in 1916. Today it’s more common in the East.
Learn how to control a Japanese beetle infestation.
Ladybug Eggs
![Ladybug egg cluster on celery leaf, close-up.](https://preprod.birdsandblooms.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/GettyImages-1356457064.jpg?resize=700,493)
Females will lay up to 1,000 eggs within a few months, generally from spring to early summer.
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Ladybug Nicknames
You might see these insects called by a few different names, including: ladybirds, ladybugs, lady beetles and lady cows.
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Ladybug Defenses
Ladybugs usually protect themselves from predators in one of two ways: They either play dead or secrete a fluid from their legs to make themselves taste bad.
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Types of Ladybugs
You can find out about 6,000 different species of ladybugs around the world. There are about 500 species in the United States alone. One of the most common ladybugs is the seven-spotted lady beetle. It has seven black spots on its back.
Here’s how to tell the difference between ladybugs and Asian beetles.
Ladybugs Eat Garden Pests
![ladybug facts, Seven-spotted Ladybug (Coccinella septempunctata), adult eating Aphids (Aphidoidea), Sinton, Corpus Christi, Coastal Bend, Texas, USA](https://preprod.birdsandblooms.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/GettyImages-130888475.jpg?resize=700,467)
Ladybugs are great garden predators. Here’s a fun ladybug fact: a ladybug can eat up to 50 aphids a day. Here are six “bad bugs” they’ll eat:
- Aphids
- Mites
- Whiteflies
- Scale insects
- Mealybugs
- Thrips
Next, learn how to tell the difference between a monarch egg and an aphid.