Two-spotted lady beetle

Appearance

''Adalia bipunctata'' is a small Coccinellid that can feature any one of a large selection of red and black forms. Some forms are similar to ''Mulsantina picta'', but the two white spots on the head of ''Adalia'' readily separate it. Additionally ''Adalia'' is entirely black on the ventral surface with black legs, which helps rule out any other options.

The two-spotted ladybird is highly variable in many parts of its native range. The most familiar form, form ''typica'' with two black spots on a red base, is common throughout. A melanistic form that is black with four or six red spots is uncommon, but not rare, while the truly melanistic form ''purpurea'' is exceedingly rare. In North America the species shows the most variation, with several forms that do not occur elsewhere including a spotless form, a four-banded form, a nine to twelve spotted form, and a "cross-hatched" form. In addition, there are intermediate forms such as form ''annulata'', but they occur rarely.

Behavior

The two-spotted lady beetle's life cycle starts with eggs that are usually laid in clutches. The larva hatches from the egg by biting a hole in it. The larva looks very different from an adult; it has an elongated, grey, soft body with six legs but no wings. They are cannibalistic. A larva goes through four larval stages: by eating it grows and at some point it sheds its old skin and appears in a new one in which it can grow more. The last larval stage is approximately the size of an adult beetle. Once it has eaten enough, the larva attaches itself to a substrate and moults into a pupa. Inside the pupa, the adult develops. Finally the adult ecloses from the pupa.