The Life Cycle of the Ladybug

1. The Life Cycle of the Ladybug Inspired by my friend Denise Created by Jeri

2. Everyone knows this is a ladybug!

3. There are many kinds of ladybugs. Some ladybugs are black with red dots, and some are orange with black dots. Some have no dots at all. There are many kinds of ladybugs and they are all welcome in the garden.

4. Male and female ladybugs mate in spring. After mating, a female lays bright yellow eggs on a leaf.

5. In about a week, a tiny larva hatches from each egg. Ladybug larvae look nothing like adult ladybugs. They are mostly black.

6. Ladybug larvae love to eat aphids. Aphids are the tiny green insects that are feeding on the plants below.

7. As a larva’s body grows bigger and bigger, its skin does not. When the skin becomes too tight, the larva sheds its skin. It does this four times. The last time it attaches itself to a leaf and has a hard dry casing. The larva is now a pupa. Inside the casing amazing changes are taking place.

8. After about one week an adult ladybug crawls out of the pupa. Its body is soft and moist and it is yellow with no dots.

9. The adult ladybug has to rest as its body hardens and its colors change. The ladybug has two hard front wings that rest over the ladybug’s back like a shell. They pop up when the ladybug flies.

10. When the cold winter comes, ladybugs look for shelter. They hibernate, or sleep through the winter, in a red-and-black heap with other ladybugs.

11. In spring, the ladybugs come out of the shelter and look for mates.

12. And the life cycle begins again!

13. The End!