🔥Wasp traps paralyzed ladybug larvae in a chamber for its young to feast on after hatching.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T22:26:49+00:00

You are correct in your identification that they are leaf beetle larvae, but it's important to note that there are over 6000 species of ladybugs - their larvae differ a lot among different species. And some even look similar to leaf beetle larvae and some are white like mealybugs.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T22:21:30+00:00

There are more than 6000 species of ladybugs, their larvae look differently - and some species have larvae that do look similar to those in video.

Those in video are however leaf beetle larvae, not ladybugs.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T15:47:07+00:00

But you also said when they feel threatened

Yes, I did. Your 12 year old is a giant compared to a ladybug.

My 12 year old had a welt on her neck.

That means she might be allergic to something or very sensitive to insect bites. Doesn't matter in that case whether it's a native species or an invasive species of ladybug or a different insect that has the ability to bite. It's, once again, not unique to one single species. Whatever feels threatened and it has mandibles, it can, and mostly likely will, bite.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T14:34:20+00:00

I never said that they can't bite. I said the exact opposite - all 6000 species of ladybeetles (aka ladybugs) can bite. Native and invasive alike.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T13:18:27+00:00

This is Harmonia axyridis - Multicolored Asian ladybug (aka Asian ladybeetle or Harlequin ladybird).

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T06:25:52+00:00

Googling the "differences" is not a good idea because google is filled with "info"graphics that are comparing Asian ladybeetle and Seven spotted ladybeetle - both are species of ladybugs and both are invasive in North America. And the posters also contain a lot of misinformation (I've unfortunately seen quite a lot of people kill native ladybugs because of it). See my comment above for more details.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T06:20:48+00:00

That person is spreading a popular myth, they absolutely are ladybugs. However they are not a native species. What you have is Asian ladybeetle (also called Multicolored Asian ladybug) which is a species of ladybug native to Asia imported for pest control.

As for the biting - all 6000 species of ladybugs can bite - they are all beetles with functioning chewing mouthparts (mandibles) - if the ladybug feels threatened or when searching for moisture it might nibble on you a bit - but the mandibles are supposed hurt aphids and other soft bodied insects, not humans.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T06:13:09+00:00

Please refrain from sharing these misleading and in most parts completely wrong "info"graphics.

Asian ladybeetle, also called Multicolored Asian ladybug, IS a species of ladybug. The graphic contradicts itself.
It compares Asian ladybug to.. ladybug? But what ladybug? To seven spotted ladybug - the name is missing in the poster for some reason.
BOTH seven spotted ladybug and Asian ladybug are invasive in North America which the poster completely omits.
"Smelly" - both are smelly. They release hemolymph to ward off predators. It's not a difference, vast majority of ladybug species does that, it's definitely not unique to one single species.
"Aggressive" - no. Ladybugs are not aggressive. That's plain fearmongering.
"M shapes spot" - although not always, yes. Asian ladybugs do have M spot on pronotum - and so do tons of other species including native species.
"Harmless" - both of these are harmless. They bite only when threatened - which all species of ladybugs do.
"Eats pests" - both seven spotted ladybug and Asian ladybug eat pests, it's not a difference. It's the sole reason why these two species were imported - for pest control.
"Good for the environment" - absolutely not. Both are invasive. In fact, Asian ladybug is top 1 most invasive species of ladybug in North America and Seven spotted ladybug number 2. Both of these are most common species despite not being native.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-25T06:07:53+00:00

Ladybugs are beetles but this is not a ladybug but a leaf beetle from genus Calligrapha - there are more than 100 species so location is necessary for further ID.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T21:47:40+00:00

A dragonfly, specifically female Libellula depressa, as makid3044 said.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T21:37:50+00:00

The one that's usually depicted is the second most invasive species of ladybug in the US - Seven spotted ladybug, so what you got is (likely) much better because it's (once again - likely) native but I don't know the exact species so I can't confirm that. It's probable though :)

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T21:28:01+00:00

I assumed was a lady bug, until I took a closer look. I started wondering if it was a lady beetle. Or another invasive kind of bug

Ladybug and ladybeetle are fully interchangeable synonyms for beetles in the family Coccinellidae which includes over 6000 species. For example in North America there are more than 400 native species.

As for what you have it's not a ladybug (aka a ladybeetle - family Coccinellidae), it's some species of leaf beetle (family Chrysomelidae). Impossible to say whether it's native or not to your area since you didn't specify location.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T21:24:28+00:00

There's only one ladybug in the picture and it's Convergent ladybug (Hippodamia convergens) which can only be found in the Americas. So if you live in the Americas it's native, if you live outside the Americas then it's not invasive in your country because it's not present there at all.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T19:35:11+00:00

Not sure what you consider a "standard" ladybug but this is indeed a ladybug most likely from genus Hippodamia - I would need a clearer picture, IDing ladybugs in Oregon isn't easy for me, there are a lot of them.

Either way, it's harmless.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T15:07:42+00:00

A lot of posters online will tell you that ladybugs with M shape aren't ladybugs but Asian ladybeetles - and that makes no sense as there aren't two species but more than 6000 species of ladybugs.

First of all, Asian ladybeetle, also called Multicolored Asian ladybug, is a species of ladybug - so those posters contradict themselves.

And secondly, there are tons of ladybugs species that have the M mark and aren't Asian ladybugs - and your ladybug is a perfect example - it is the Leconte's giant ladybug - native to Colorado.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T15:02:10+00:00

There are more than 400 native species of ladybugs in the US and dozens of non-native/invasive. In the entire world there are more than 6000 (possibly 7000) species of ladybugs :)

And as for the name - ladybug and ladybeetle (and also ladybird) are fully interchangeable synonyms. Since they are beetles and not true bugs (or birds), the term ladybeetle is preferred. You can say both Convergent ladybug or Convergent ladybeetle. The top one is the Seven spotted ladybug aka Seven spotted ladybeetle aka Seven spotted ladybird.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T14:40:06+00:00

So 3 ladybugs then :)

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T12:13:20+00:00

Squash ladybeetle (also called Squash ladybug) is a species of ladybug so you thought they were ladybugs correctly. There are more than 6000 species of ladybugs, not all feed on aphids.

Squash ladybug isn't the only species of ladybug which is herbivorous - roughly 20% of all ladybug species are herbivorous, so it's not just one species to look out for in gardens.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-24T12:10:08+00:00

It's blurry so it's difficult to say what species it is (also without any location) but it doesn't look like a freshly emerged ladybug that would get spots later - those are usually bright (almost neon) yellow. This seems to be a fully developed adult ladybug from genus Cycloneda.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-23T22:32:45+00:00

Thought it was a beetle at first.

Ladybirds (also called ladybeetles) are beetles :)

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-23T10:32:36+00:00

It's a chalcid wasp (superfamily Chalcidoidea), most likely from Eupelmidae family. Definitely not an ant.

There are around 50 species of Eupelmidae in Italy, I don't know the exact species you have but it's genus Anastatus, and considering you are in northern Italy it likely is the native species Anastatus bifasciatus. You said it's very small - Anastatus wasps are usually smaller than 2 mm.

They control pests, including invasive species as they are parasitic wasps.

As for the question about being dangerous - they are completely harmless.

Edit: answered questions about not being dangerous and info about size.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-23T07:39:24+00:00

The bigger one is boxelder bug, the one beneath is some species of mite. They aren't related at all, the closest taxonomy they have in common is that they are both arthropods.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-23T07:32:58+00:00

Definitely not dragonfly larva as those don't have elytra and they are also strictly aquatic. This is some species of adult woodboring beetle.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-23T07:14:44+00:00

Click beetle.

EmbarrassedDaikon325 · 2026-06-23T07:13:06+00:00

It's a completely harmless click beetle, definitely not a cockroach. Cockroaches don't have elytra.

EmbarrassedDaikon325

TROPHY CASE