7-Spotted Ladybird
The biggest feature of this lovely ladbybird is the heart shape pointed towards the heart, held up by two white half-circles as though they were bushes under a tree. The white spots are perhaps echos of the spots around the eyes, meant to distract a predator to the shield rather than the face.
Here I introduce a new term: Elytra, pl. (singular elytron), pronounced “eeLIEtra.” Imagine that you were a fairy with two pairs of soft delicate wings, one set higher than the other lower pair of wings. If you were a warrior, you would probably attempt to shield them somehow. The sturdy structure of Chitin would have come to your cause, but rather than attach them outwardly, the upper pair were replaced with a harder structure of chitin to form a shield. The Elytra was formed.
The hardened sheath atop is probably what gives this insect the boldness to stand and turn at my gaze. I photographed one that turned to stare me down every which way I tried. A pug of a bug, pugilistic in its form.
Eating an aphid on a rose bush in April.
Pine Ladybird – Exochomus quadripustulatus
14-Spotted Lady Beetle: Propylea 14-punctata
Orange Ladybird – Halyzia sedecimguttata (16-guttata)
Asian Lady Beetle – Harmonia axyridis
This one was trickier as it has no spots, however, the face is the main giveaway to what species this is. The broadly painted white cheeks with accents of black are the main clue, although the Asian Lady Beetle has significant variation in spots and color.
Waunder 