Keeping Trout - Backyard Magazines

Friend or Foe
Ironing out the
The good, the Bad
or the Ugly?
By Faye Arcaro
Many of the 4000 species
of ladybug, lady beetle or
ladybird are beneficial to
our systems, devouring
many of our insect pests which seek to
destroy our crops. They are classified as
a beetle and belong to the class insecta.
They have 3 body parts consisting
of thorax, abdomen and head. Their
antennae are clubbed and they have
6 legs. Ladybirds are orange to red in
colour and this indicates that they do not
taste very nice and may be poisonous,
deterring many predators. Being a
winged insect they have the ability
to fly away if they feel threatened or
they may just retract and close down,
tucking in their wings and feet. An adult
ladybird can eat 50 aphids per day and
4 Issue 3 • 2008
during the larval stage many consume
up to 400 aphids in its short life. Food
supplies for ladybirds include mites and if
aphids are scarce they will also eat small
insects and eggs of moths or beetles.
Their size can range from one to ten
millimetres depending on the species.
These bugs may be purchased and used
as a biological control for infestations
across the world and are often freed
in glasshouses as a natural method of
integrated pest management (IPM).
There are ladybirds which eat plant
matter and these are the leaf eating
ladybirds, easily recognisable by their
26-28 spots on a yellow/ orange mustard
coloured background. These pests are not
welcome in an aquaponic system as they
Eyed Ladybird
Ladybird face Ladybirds mating Laying eggs
skeletonise the leaves causing them to
wither and die. The host plants that leaf
eating lady birds eat include plants such
as deadly nightshade as well as other
solanum species like tomatoes, potatoes,
and cucurbits (rock melon, cucumber,
marrow, pumpkins and zucchini). The
control method for this type of pest in a
home garden or aquaponic situation is
to hand pick and squash both adult and
larva. Destroy infested crop as soon as
possible after harvesting fruit to minimize
spread.