Within the Coleoptera we find the ladybugs, which belong to the Coccinellidae family. These insects are characterized by their tiny sizes, which do not usually exceed 10 mm, by presenting various colors, which in some cases form patterns of beautiful combinations, and by having a wide global distribution.
Ladybugs, unlike other insects, do not respond to a single pattern in their life cycle, but rather aspects such as the species and habitat conditions have an important influence on their reproductive biology. To help you better understand this, in this article on our site we explain how long a ladybug lives and detail its life cycleWe invite you to continue reading so that you know all the details about this aspect in particular.
Ladybug Life Cycle
Ladybugs can be univoltine, which means they breed once a year, or bivoltine, which means they breed at least twice in a year. Reproduction is sexual and with internal fertilization, as we explained in the article on How ladybugs reproduce. Regarding their development, they are holometabolous animals, that is, they have a life cycle made up of stages, developing a complete metamorphosis.
The life cycle of ladybugs is determined or mediated by the environmental conditions of the habitat, since under extreme temperatures, they are caused Due to cold, heat and even drought, these insects do not reproduce and normally enter a state of inactivity known as diapause.
The four stages these insects go through are: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. In the following sections we will learn how each of these phases are characterized to better see how long a ladybug lives.
Egg Stage
Ladybug eggs vary from one species to another, so they don't all follow the same pattern. Thus, some can be more oval and others almost spherical. The average size is 1 mm, but they can vary between 0.25 and 2.5 mm. An example is found in the genus Stethorus, which usually has very small eggs, while in the genus Neda they are larger.
The external surface of the eggs is normally smooth and shiny, they do not have edges or any type of protuberance as happens with other types of insects. In terms of color, they tend to yellow, cream or orange tones, but eventually some can be green or grayish. As the embryo develops, the eggs become darker and turn whitish when they emerge.
How many eggs does a ladybug lay?
Females lay about 50 eggs per season and in their lifetime they produce between 300 and 500 approximately, however, in certain bivoltine species can even reach a few thousand eggs.
The eggs are laid on the plants, some females do so in several to guarantee the dispersal of the offspring. A very curious fact is that, commonly, two ladybugs do not use the same plant to lay eggs.
A characteristic aspect of ladybug eggs is that these structures are nutritious, since when they hatch, are usually the first meal of the larvaeIn fact, in the limited presence of food, females can produce unfertilized eggs for the larvae to initially feed upon emergence.
After a female lays, it will take about 4-10 for them to hatch, indicating that the embryo has a rapid development before moving on to the next stage or phase known as a larva.
Larva stage
Most ladybug larvae are characterized by being active in feeding. In fact, as soon as they come out of the egg they feed on it and on those unfertilized eggs that are in the place of laying. During this phase, these insects go through 1 or even 5 stages, depending on the species, in order to prepare for the next stage of the life cycle. Thus, some genera have only 3 instars, while others, such as Coleomegilla and Harmonia, have 5. Usually the last ones last the longest.
Sometimes the larvae can grow even larger than an adult. A peculiar feature of ladybugs is that their larvae have a good development, have a free life and are predators of other insects, such as aphids, although they have a very varied diet. They are commonly covered by a chitinous structure, some kind of serous or fuzz-like appendage; They can come in various shapes and sizes depending on the species, and some even have limbs to move around, while others look like tiny worms. As for the colors, they can be light or grayish at first, but in certain cases, as they progress through the stages, they obtain different colors, for example, yellow or orange.
The approximate time that ladybugs last in the larval state is between 12 and 20 days, but this is not a general rule, since that some even take about a month or a little longer.
As an example to better visualize the development and life cycle of a ladybug, we will take as an example the twenty-two-spot ladybug (Psyllobora vigintiduopunctada), so in the image we find it in its normal state of larva. If you want to know other types, don't miss our article on Types of ladybugs.
Pupal stage
As happens in other insects, the pupal stage is less active in terms of movement, since in this phase metamorphosis occursto become an adult, so there is a complex process that the individual goes through. In this case, the pupae are not contained in a cocoon, but they have a tissue that covers and protects them ; in some cases there may be inconspicuous villus species.
Once this stage begins, the individual attaches to a part of the plant or even to an artificial substrate, which which it does through the base of the body. The colors vary according to the type, so they can be clear, yellow, orange and even some with visibly black spots.
If a pupa is touched during this process, it may move quickly and violently to try to persuade it to continue being disturbed. Pupating ladybugs last approximately 8 days.
Continuing with the same example, we see in the image the twenty-two-spot ladybug in the pupal stage.
Adult stage
At the end of metamorphosis, the adults emerge transversely from the pupa. Unlike other insects that last a very short time in the adult stage, ladybugs have their longest phase here, so that univoltine species have a duration of at least one year as adults, while bivoltines have a longer life expectancy.
In general, it is common to find all the species throughout the year, as long as the temperatures and habitat conditions are favorable, because otherwise they go into diapause during those periods. Ladybugs have a fairly high reproductive activity, they can do so even before entering diapause, which means that the female reserves the sperm and fertilization does not occur until after exiting this idle process. On the other hand, when they wake up from this state, after a short time they begin to reproduce.
Adult individuals in general are useful species as biological controllers, which keep the populations of certain pests in balance that can cause significant damage to agriculture.
How long does a ladybug live in total?
Finally, we can mention that, although there is no single length of time for the life cycle of ladybugs, on average, from the laying of an egg to the metamorphosis of an adult, the time ranges around one month. Now, how many years does a ladybug live in total? From birth to death, the life expectancy of the ladybug is around a year and a little more, although it can be extended depending on whether they are bivoltine or if they diapause.
