We are in the middle of an invasion. Thousands of Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle can be seen in just about any sunny location as it tries find a place to spend the winter.

Also called the Asian Lady Beetle (Harmonia axyridis), these aggressive non-native beetles look similar to our native Ladybug. We have three species of native Ladybugs, Two-spot Ladybug, Nine-spotted Ladybug and Convergent Ladybug. All of these beetles are reddish orange with dark spots and are considered a beneficial insect because they feed on garden pests such as aphids and other harmful insects. They don’t carry any disease, nor do they infest food or clothing. And best of all, they don’t bite people like the Asian counterpart.

The Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle looks similar to our native beetle with a oval convex shaped body about .25 inch long. They range in color from pale yellow to orange. Most have several dark spots on their hard wing covers but many lack spots entirely. However most have a dark mark on a whitish area just behind the tiny head.

The Asian Lady Beetle is a new resident in the northland. They were first reported in late 1990’s. The influx is a result of natural movement or expansion of their range. But they didn’t fly over her from Asia. No, these little beetles were imported to the United States by the USDA in 1979-80 as a biological control agent in an attempt to control agricultural pest such as scale and aphids on pecan trees in Louisiana and Mississippi. It took several introductions to establish but once the beetles took hold, they started to multiply. By 1994 they were found in Alabama, Georgia and Florida. They are now found throughout the US.

They are also called Halloween Lady Beetle (because of their orange color and because they are often observed around Halloween), and they are also called Japanese Lady Beetle because Japan was the country of origin for the release in the US.

Like our native Ladybug, the life cycle of the Asian Lady Beetle is very similar. After mating they lay tiny yellow eggs on the undersurfaces of leaves. The eggs hatch within a week and a tiny red and black alligator-shaped larva emerges. The larva feed heavily on aphids, more so than the adult beetles. Its been reported that adult multicolored Asian Lady Beetles can eat 100-250 aphids a day while the larva can consume 600-1200 aphids during the few short days to week that they are around.

Once the larva eats and grows enough, it will enter a pupal stage–similar to a cocoon. After only a couple weeks the pupa transforms (metamorphoses) into the adult beetle. The average time from egg to adult is only about one month depending upon the food source and air temperature. Adults can live for 2-3 years.

As autumn approaches thousands of these woodland beetles congregate on the south sides of trees, rocks and houses looking for a warm and protected cracks and crevices to spend the winter.

The invasion will last only until the weather turns cold. So if you are having troubles with massive amounts of these beetles, you are best off buying extra bags for your vacuum cleaner, because the best way to deal with them is to just vacuum them up.

Until next time…