Lady Beetle vs Ladybugs – What is the Difference?

The lady bug is the nice little red bug that is good for your yard and garden. It often eats tiny pests that can destroy your plants or grass. It is beneficial and humans have taken a liking to this bug.

Then there is the lady beetle. This beetle looks a lot like the ladybug. It gains our trust by fooling our eyes and infests homes and leaves behind waste and stench. It is probably no accident that it looks a lot like the ladybug. Nature often gives certain creatures a disguise to fool other animals. The coral snakes series of look-a-likes is the perfect example of this. These non-deadly snakes “piggy-back” off the reputation of the coral snake.

Back to the lady beetle, aka Harmonia axyridis. It started showing up first in the United States in 1988 in Louisiana and is native to Asia. It now can be found through most of the continental countryside.

There is a way to tell these beetles apart from ladybugs. Here is a list:

1. Lady beetle is more orange in color.
2. Lady beetle has more of a pointed snout.
3. Lady beetle has more spots.
4. Lady beetle’s spots are a bit faded.
5. Lady beetle has a white head with an “M” shaped black mark on the back on its head.

If you spot these beetles in your home you may want to check, or have someone check, your attic. They typically congregate in groups and break-out in Spring months to reproduce.

A qualified pest control agent can treat the areas of your home where this pest dwells preventing them from nesting there.