Coccinella septempunctata is found throughout Europe, North Africa and most of Asia, and has been introduced to North America and South Africa.Ĭlassical biological control in North AmericaĬlassical biological control is dependent on two outcomes: First a non-native species has to be introduced to an area, usually by mass release, and then become a self-sustaining population. The adults overwinter in sheltered sites often in large aggregations. The seven-spot ladybird is mainly aphidophagous, but also feeds on thrips (Thysanoptera), white flies (Aleyrodidae) and the eggs and larvae of other insects. The dorso-lateral and ventro-lateral tubercles on abdominal segments one and four are orange.Ĭoccinella septempunctata is a common species occurring in many different habitats including gardens, grassland, and broad-leaved and mixed forests. Coccinella undecimpunctata which lacks the orange lateral patches on the prothorax).
The sides of the meso- and metathorax are pale grey, but there are orange lateral patches on the prothorax (cf. The fourth instar larva of Coccinella septempunctata (see third picture above) is dark grey-black with mostly black tubercles. The underside of Coccinella septempunctata is more or less completely black. The size of the spots is highly variable. The typical elytral pattern is seven black spots: there is one common spot around the scutellum, and three on each elytron with small white patches on either side of the scutellum, just above the scutellar spot.
The ground colour of the elytra is usually red or orange (see first two pictures below), rarely yellow. The pronotum is black, with a pale yellow or white antereolateral spot. The head is black with a pair of semicircular white frontal spots, one on either side of the inner margin of the eyes. Coccinella septempunctata is a fairly large ladybird (5.2-8.6 mm), oval in shape and strongly convex.
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