Checklist Feature

Coccinellidae Checklist: Ladybird Beetles

on
27 September 2023

Ladybirds from the family Coccinellidae Latreille, 1807 are also commonly known as Ladybugs in North America, but are actually not true bugs but beetles. That is why some prefer to use the name ladybird beetles rather than ladybugs to avoid any confusion caused by the misnomer. Ladybirds are one of the few insects that are not actively disliked as they are often seen feeding on aphids and can be pretty useful insects for getting rid of these agricultural pests. However, those in the subfamily Epilachninae do feed on the leaves of certain crops as well.

Etymology

The name “ladybird” originated in Britain because early paintings often portrayed Mary (Our Lady) wearing a red cloak or veil. The most common ladybird in Europe – the seven-spot ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata) – had spots that were said to symbolize her seven joys and seven sorrows. According to an old European legend, farmers prayed to the Virgin Mary asking for help to save them from the pests devouring their crops, and she sent a swarm of tiny beetles bearing her trademark coat to eat them. Hence, this family of insects became known as “Our Lady’s Bird” or what we now know as the Lady Beetle. [1]

Many countries had different names for these beetles, and some had similar references to God, Virgin Mary or cows, perhaps drawing similarities from the cow’s spots. [2]

  • Germany: Marienkäfer (Mary’s beetle)
  • France: la bete a bon Dieu (good God’s animal)
  • Russia: Bozhya korovka (God’s little cow)
  • Greece: paschalitsa (little Easter)
  • Portugal: joaninha (little Joanne)
  • Spain: mariquita (little Maria)
  • Wales: buwch goch gota (small red cow)
  • Scotland: daolag-bhreac (speckled beetle)
  • Slovenia: pikapolonica (spotty bug)
  • Argentina: Vaquita de San Antonio (St. Anthony’s small cow)

The family’s scientific name Coccinellidae is derived from the word coccineus in Latin, which means “scarlet”, as the most common ladybirds then were typically brilliant red in colour.

Checklist

This page consists of a personal checklist of all Ladybirds / Ladybugs / Lady Beetles / Coccinellidae that I’ve encountered over the years. Many were identified by Adam Slipinski via Flickr. Some are still not identified, so any assistance on identification will be appreciated!

All photos are of live subjects shot in the field, with the dorsal view selected where available. Click on individual photos for larger views and views from other angles. As specimens were not collected, identifications were done purely based on photographs and may not be 100% accurate.

This post will be updated regularly, please let me know if you spot any mistakes.

View my complete Flickr photo set: Coccinellidae – Ladybirds.

Region Filters

Click on any region to show only records from that region.

Class: Insecta Linnaeus, 1758

Order: Coleoptera Linnaeus, 1758

Family: Coccinellidae Latreille, 1807

Subfamily: Coccinellinae Latreille, 1807

Tribe: Coccidulini Mulsant, 1846

Ladybird (Scymnus sp.) preying on an aphid - DSC_3888

Singapore: cf. Scymnus sp.

Ladybird beetle (cf. Scymnus sp.) - DSC_1912

Madagascar: cf. Scymnus sp.

Tribe: Coccinellini Latreille, 1807

Ladybird beetle (Azya orbigera) - DSC_9960

Belize: Azya orbigera Mulsant, 1850

Ladybird beetle (Coccinella transversalis) - PB214814

Thailand: Coccinella transversalis Fabricius, 1781

Seven-spotted ladybird beetle (Coccinella septempunctata) - P6175224

Netherlands: Coccinella septempunctata (Linnaeus, 1758)

Ladybird (Coelophora cf. inaequalis) - DSC_3626

Singapore: Coelophora cf. inaequalis (Fabricius, 1775)

Ladybird beetle (Coelophora sp.) - P1219292

West Malaysia: Coelophora sp. P1219292

Ladybird beetle (Heteroneda reticulata) - DSC_2701

Singapore: Heteroneda reticulata Fabricius, 1801

Ladybird beetle (Hysia endomycina) - DSC_3087

East Malaysia: Hysia endomycina Boisduval, 1835

Ladybird (Illeis koebelei) - DSC_7579

Singapore: Illeis koebelei Timberlake 1943

Ladybird beetle (cf. Microcaria albolineata) - PB215433

Thailand: cf. Microcaria albolineata (Gyllenhal, 1808)

Ladybird beetle (Neda sp.) - P6154256

Ecuador: Neda sp. P6154256

Ladybird beetle (Neda sp.) - P6154245

Ecuador: Neda sp. P6154245

Ladybird beetle (Neda sp.) - P6154193

Ecuador: Neda sp. P6154193

Ladybird beetle (Neda sp.) - P6154136

Ecuador: Neda sp. P6154136

Ladybird beetle (Neda sp.) - P6067514

Ecuador: Neda sp. P6067514

Tribe: Plotinini Miyatake, 1994

Ladybird beetle (Ballida brahamae) - PC096236

Singapore: Ballida brahamae Mulsant, 1850

Subfamily: Epilachninae Mulsant, 1846

Tribe: Epilachnini Mulsant, 1846

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_3010

Singapore: Epilachna sp.

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_4860

Singapore: Epilachna sp.

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_0831

Singapore: Epilachna sp.

Ladybird beetle (Epilachna sp.) - P6144026

Ecuador: Epilachna sp. P6144026

Epilachna approximata group

Ladybird beetle (Toxotoma sp.) - P6067712

Ecuador: Toxotoma sp. P6067712

Epilachna approximata group

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_1755

Singapore: Henosepilachna sp.

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_5871

Singapore: Epilachnini?

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_9187

Singapore: Epilachnini?

Ladybird beetle (Epilachnini) - DSC_3071

East Malaysia: Epilachnini

Ladybirds (Coccinellidae) - DSC_5291

Mozambique: Epilachnini?

Subfamily: Microweiseinae Leng, 1920

Tribe: Serangiini Pope, 1962

Ladybird beetle (Serangium sp.) - P3060421

Singapore: Serangium sp.

Subfamily: Ortaliinae Mulsant, 1850

Tribe: Noviini Ganglbauer, 1899

Ladybird (Rodolia sp.) - DSC_4606

Singapore: Rodolia sp.

Tribe: Ortaliini Mulsant, 1850

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_9078

Singapore: Amida sp.

Ladybird beetle (Amida sp.) - DSC_4960

Singapore: Amida sp.

Subfamily: Sticholotidinae Weise, 1901

Tribe: Sticholotidini Weise, 1901

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_6374

Singapore: cf. Chilocorellus sp.

Ladybirds (Sticholotis sp.) - DSC_1356

Singapore: Sticholotis sp.

Ladybird beetle (Sticholotis sp.) - PA150528

Singapore: Sticholotis sp.

Subfamily: Scymninae Mulsant, 1846

Micro ladybirds (Scymninae) - DSC_8621

Belize: Scymninae

Tribe: Scymnini Mulsant, 1846

Dusky ladybird beetle (Scymnini) - P4307614

Singapore: Scymnini P4307614

Ladybird beetle (cf. Sasajiscymnus sp.) - P2204692

Singapore: cf. Sasajiscymnus sp.

Ladybird beetle (cf. Scymnus sp.) - PA140422

Singapore: cf. Scymnus sp.

Dusky ladybird beetle (Scymnini) - P1271045

Singapore: Scymnini P1271045

Unidentified

Ladybird (Coccinellidae) - DSC_1134

Singapore: Coccinellidae fungus-beetle-mimic

Ladybird beetle (Coccinellidae) - DSC_2195

Singapore: Coccinellidae DSC_2195

Ladybird beetle (Coccinellidae) - P7095659

East Malaysia: Coccinellidae P7095659

Larvae

Ladybird larva (Coccinellidae) - DSC_6417

Singapore: Unidentified

Ladybird larva (Coccinellidae) - DSC_7386

Singapore: Unidentified

Ladybird larva? - DSC_4350

Singapore: Unidentified

Asian ladybird beetle (Harmonia axyridis) - P6175238

Netherlands: Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773)

Pupae

Ladybird pupa (Coccinellidae) - DSC_9972

Singapore: Unidentified

Ladybird larava (Coccinellidae) - DSC_1816

Singapore: Unidentified

Ladybird nymph (Coccinellidae) - DSC_2542

Singapore: Heteroneda reticulata Fabricius, 1801

Ladybird larava (Coccinellidae) - DSC_1798

Singapore: Unidentified

Ladybird beetle (Harmonia axyridis) - P6175231

Netherlands: Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773)

Behavior

Ladybird laying eggs (Coccinellidae) - DSC_5804

Singapore: Coelophora cf. inaequalis laying eggs

Ladybird (Scymnus sp.) preying on an aphid - DSC_3903

Singapore: cf. Scymnus sp. preying on an aphid

Ladybird (Rodolia sp.) - DSC_4592

Singapore: Rodolia sp. emergence

Ladybirds mating (Illeis cf. koebelei) - DSC_1855

Singapore: Illeis koebelei mating

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1 Comment
  1. Reply

    John Apicelli

    28 December 2023

    Thank you for posting your work . I appreciate the thorough and amazing work you do .
    Wishing you all good things for 2024 .
    JA

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NICKY BAY
Singapore

Hi my name is Nicky Bay. I am a macro photographer, instructor and book author, travelling the world to document the vast micro biodiversity that nature has to offer. Follow my updates and discover with me the incredible beauty and science behind our planet's micro creatures!

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