Twenty-two point ladybug
| Twenty-two point ladybug | ||||||||||||
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Twenty-two-spot ladybird |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The twenty-two-spot ladybird or fungal Ladybug ( Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata ) is a beetle from the family of ladybugs (Coccinellidae).
features
The beetles are three to 4.5 millimeters long and have an almost circular body. Their wings are bright yellow in color and each have 11 black points. The scutellum is also black. On the also yellow, but sometimes bright pronotum are five symmetrically arranged black spots, one of them a tag. The underside of the beetle is black with yellow spots. Both their antennae and their legs are colored yellow except for the dark femora . The penultimate segments of the antennae are longer than they are wide. There are seldom specimens in which spots are connected to one another or in which some are missing.
The larvae are also yellow and have black appendages all over their bodies from which tufts with black hairs grow. The legs are black too.
Occurrence
The animals are found in large parts of Europe , North Africa and Asia . They are particularly absent in the far north. They live on the edges of forests, meadows and also in gardens. They are particularly common on oaks . The adults fly from April to September.
Way of life
The adults feed on as well as the larvae mycetophag of powdery mildew and overwinter as imagines frequently in larger companies, rarely alone in the ground. Because of their mushroom food, they are considered beneficial insects by gardeners. When in danger, the beetle pulls its legs to its body and plays dead . He secretes a foul-smelling defense secretion from his legs ( reflex bleeding ). In spring, the females lay eggs on leaves that have been affected by powdery mildew. The larvae lead a similar way of life as the beetles. They develop on leaves that have been infected with powdery mildew.
See also
Finnish rock-pop group 22-Pistepirkko named themselves after the twenty-two-point ladybug.
literature
- Harde, Severa: Der Kosmos Käferführer, The Central European Beetles , Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH & Co, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-440-06959-1
- Jiři Zahradnik, Irmgard Jung, Dieter Jung et al .: Beetles of Central and Northwestern Europe. Parey, Berlin 1985, ISBN 3-490-27118-1
