Ladybug colors have something to do with their wing covers, and the most common colors are red, yellow, and orange. The red one with black dots is the most common depiction of the ladybug.
Some ladybugs are pure black, which means they also have black wings. Ladybugs also have black legs and heads, including the antennae.
What Colors Can Ladybugs Be?
Because there are thousands of species of ladybugs, it is a good idea to name some of the most common ones only.
1. Black and Red
The most common ladybug color is a combination of black and red. The dots or spots are black, and its wings are bright red. The official name of this ladybug is the seven-spot ladybug. The number seven denotes the number of spots on its wings.
There is another variant of this color in which the wings are black and the spots are red. This ladybird or bug is called pine ladybird. It has two red spots shaped like a comma.
2. Yellow Shouldered
The yellow-shouldered ladybug has bluish-black wings with no spots. Its shoulders are yellow. This ladybug was found in Australia and was first discovered in 1961.
The distinct feature of this ladybug is that its wings have hairs. There are two subspecies of this ladybug, and they are Apolinus lividigaster wallacii and the Apolinus lividigaster lividigaster.
These ladybugs are predators, and they prey on aphids. They are common in Australia, and one can often see them in crops and gardens.
3. 2-Spot
The 2-spot ladybug has a spectrum of orange to red wings, but it only has two black spots. They are beneficial insects as they help in managing gardens and keeping pest populations low.
A medium-sized ladybug, this one lives in many types of habitats like parks and gardens. They feed on aphids, and they hibernate during the winter.
4. Yellow and Black
The official name of this ladybug is the nine-spotted lady beetle. Its wings are orange, and there are nine black spots on them.
The nine-spotted ladybug is scientifically namedCoccinella novemnotata, and many people in the insect industry call it the C-9.
The nine-spotted ladybug is the official state insect of New York, and this was announced in 1989. It is common in agricultural lands in the state. However, it is already extinct in the state today.
5. White and Black
There are two types of ladybugs with white and black wings and spots. These are the twenty-spotted lady beetle and the fifteen-spotted lady beetle.
Both these bugs have off-white wings—so off-white that they may look brown to some people. In addition, they have black spots. The main difference is that they do not have the same spot count.
The 20-spotted one has spots on its head, while the 15-spotted has a black head in its entirety. The twenty-spotted variety is native to North America.
6. Pink and Black
The oink-spotted lady beetle is a curiosity. Its wings are pink, and its spots are larger than most bugs. Its scientific name is Coleomegilla maculate.
Like the previous one, it is native to North America. They primarily eat aphids. They inhabit many field crops, and below are some of the fields where one can find them:
- Corn
- Alfalfa
- Soybean
- Rice
- Cotton
They also consume insect eggs and insects. As such, they are beneficial to crops. They are active mostly between April and October.
7. Orange
The orange color is shared by several species of ladybug. Below are some of the most common:
- Two-spot
- Convergent
- Ten-spotted
- Transverse
- Thirteen-spotted
One interesting fact about the transverse ladybird is that its spots are not always round. Some of the spots are more like weird shapes. This species of ladybug shows a lot of variation in its spot pattern.
The transverse ladybird, or bug, eats plant-eating insects. Farmers love them as the bugs keep pest populations low. As such, the farmers can expect an excellent harvest.
8. Bluish-black-green
The steelblue ladybird is unique. It is one of those that do not have spots. Its scientific name is Halmus chalybeus, and it is native to Australia.
Its color is somewhat difficult to describe, as it can be a combination of blue and green—so dark that it may look black to the eyes. In addition, its wings emanate some kind of iridescence. What it means is that its wings have a shine to them.
9. Gray-Orange
The large leaf-eating ladybird is a combination of yellow, orange, and gray. Its body is mainly grayish, and its spots are orange and yellow.
This bug has a pronounced yellow spot on its shoulders. Endemic to some countries and regions, this one eats the foliage of some plants. It also eats cultivated plants like potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplants.
Since there are thousands of ladybugs out there, it is impossible to list them all down here. Because of the number of species, there is also an endless possibility of color combinations.
So far, the most beautiful ladybug is the red and black one. Not only is it the most common, but its color combination of black spots on bright red wings is perfect.
Rarest Color of Ladybugs
The rarest ladybug color, which many people do not see, is tan. There are only two specimens of the tan ladybug that have been collected. The first one is a male specimen, which was collected in Montana. The other specimen, a female, was taken from Idaho.
Apart from the tan color, these two specimens are headless. Well, they really are not headless. However, they can retract their heads back into their throats.
Scientists concluded that these are not only new species but also a new genus. The new species is officially called Allenius iviei, after the professor and entomologist Michael Ivie.
Conclusion
Ladybugs come in several shapes and sizes, and colors. The most common are yellow and red, with black dots, as is often depicted in cartoons and artworks.
There are over 5,000 species of ladybug, and they are technically called beetles. In many areas of the world, the lad bug is considered a good luck charm.
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