![]() Legs do not appear to be used for holding food. The jaws are the primarily structures used for holding and chewing the prey. The adult and larval ladybirds eat aphids and other insects. There are at least two generations per year the first coincides with the spring flush of plant growth and high aphid populations. Larvae may be present from late September onwards. ![]() In spring (August onwards), overwintering females feed and lay eggs. The same overwintering sites may be used every year. (white cedar), kowhai, ( Sophora tetraptera), among needles on lateral shoots of Pinus radiata, under loose bark, and in cracks in old wooden fence posts. In Canterbury, they hibernate from April to September on Thuja orientalis L. The length of time of each life stage depends on temperature, being shorter at higher temperatures.Īdult eleven-spotted ladybirds overwinter, often sheltering in large groups. If disturbed, the pupa can wag up and down. The pupa remains attached to the plant by its hind end, which is usually surrounded by the moulted larval skin. When the fourth larval instar is fully grown, it attaches itself to a sheltered place on a plant and moults into a pupa. The older instars have pale spots on certain abdominal segments, the arrangement of which is characteristic of the species. As the larva grows, it moults (changes skin). They don’t appear to be used for holding prey. The three pairs of legs are used for walking. The larva is dark grey with rows of black tubercles on the dorsal (upper) side of the abdominal and thoracic segments. A long, dark larva hatches from each egg. Female ladybirds lay small groups of yellow eggs on leaves, usually near infestations of prey. The small head has a pair of compound eyes and two short antennae. Like most insects, this ladybird has three pairs of legs that are coloured black. Under the elytra is a pair of wings used for flying. The prothorax (first segment with legs) and the head are black with white areas the prothorax has a pair of white areas at the front and side. The size and arrangement of spots may vary and the small front spots may become very small, almost invisible. The elytra (wing covers) are red with the characteristic 11 black spots. The adults are mainly coloured red and black.
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