Ladybugs are perhaps one of the insects that everyone likes the most. Unlike, for example, mosquitoes or worms , ladybugs tend to like them because of their striking color, their moles, and also because of the belief that finding one brings good luck. They are also quite curious insects so we are now talking about ladybugs: where they live, what they eat and other curious facts.
Ladybugs trivia: where they live, what they eat and other fun facts
Ladybugs are insects that belong to the order of beetles and to the ladybird family. An insect with a rounded shape, with an appearance of bright colors and decorated with striking spots , although we can also find a species that only have color and not spots.
The ladybug, which lives on plants of various kinds, is sometimes very useful to man, because it devours aphids in large numbers , small insects that often cause very serious damage to cultivated plants. The best known and most widespread species is the common ladybird or Coccinella septempunctata, red in color with seven black spots.
On the other hand, ladybugs usually appear between May and October in the Northern Hemisphere and between September and April in the Southern Hemisphere. However, if the days remain warm, the period can be extended. They have wings and can fly, although their tiny and fragile body prevents them from traveling long distances.
Development and growth of ladybugs
Ladybugs lay eggs and are laid in small groups, sometimes on the bodies of their prey. Among the fertile eggs there are also some infertile specimens, which act as food for the larvae, whose growth stages are 4.
After laying the eggs, the females go back to hunting but remain close. Therefore, if in their wandering they return to the place where the eggs are found, they are able to eat them.
The larvae are also cannibals. The latter have an elongated body, spotted and sometimes dark in color. They lack wings but often have sclerified plaques on their elongated body that develop within a few weeks before becoming a ladybug.
Other curiosities
Ladybugs are skilled predators. They are particularly voracious, even in the larval stage, and fertile. In fact, they can lay eggs more than once during the year.
Ladybugs are exemplary predators. They feed on aphids, mites, and other plant parasites . For this reason they are usually used in biological control although as we have mentioned, they are also usually responsible for many plants dying. On the other hand, one of the most curious characteristics of ladybugs is their ability to adapt to adverse conditions.
In fact, if necessary, these insects can change their diet, becoming, from time to time, lovers of sugary liquids, fruits, pollen and specimens of the same family or species.
Why are ladybugs said to bring good luck?
Although there is a general belief that ladybugs bring good luck, we must clarify that not in all cultures of the world this insect is seen in this way. Let’s say that the ladybug as a lucky charm is a specific trait of many European cultures.
For example, in Norse mythologies, the ladybug is related to the goddess of fertility, Freyja in Old Norse.
In addition, in several European countries, this little animal is linked to the Virgin , who was often depicted in the Middle Ages with a red cape.
The seven black points typical of the cuirass of the common ladybug , would be a symbol of the seven joys and seven sorrows of the Virgin Mary. However, there are also testimonies from other cultures (for example, the Jewish) that assign particularly favorable characteristics to ladybugs , which shows that these insects were already the object of veneration by our ancestors.
