Orange-spotted Ladybird - Orcus australasiae (synonym Parapriasus australasiae)
FAMILY COCCINELLIDAE
This page contains information and pictures about Steelblue Ladybird Beetles that we found in the Brisbane area, Queensland, Australia
- Body length 5mm
- The ladybird beetle is dark green in colour with six orange dots on wings cover.
- We found this ladybird on a Citrus plant in Mt Coot-tha Botanic Garden on early Summer. Dan Papacek (Bugs for Bugs) kindly sent us email advised that this ladybird is probably the Parapriasus australasiae.
- This species seems to feed readily on the soft scale insects such as Black Scale Saissetia oleae and the close relatives. In the above pictures, the ladybird came to examine the Black Scale and encountered an ant.
- When the ladybirds hunt for scale insects, they will encounter different species of ants. Those ants come for the honey-dew from the scale insect. The ladybird helmet shape of wing-covers protect them those ants. They sit with legs and antenna hidden under the wing-covers. The ants just cannot do anything about them.
- Reference:
- 1. Australian Ladybird Beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) Their biology and classification - A.Ślipiński, Australian Biological Resources, 2007, p80.
- 2. Taxonomy of Coccinellids - Coccinellidae - Marienkäfer - Ladybirds, by Rudolf Christl, 2005.
- 1. Australian Ladybird Beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) Their biology and classification - A.Ślipiński, Australian Biological Resources, 2007, p80.
