Ladybug or Asian Lady Beetle?

June 7, 2019 4:06 AM

I can't tell but one of you surely can

Here's a picture. Is this a Ladybug or an Asian Lady Beetle?

I've looked at the internet to try to figure it out, but I'm not sure. I think it's a Ladybug because it doesn't really have a "snout" or an "M" shaped marking, but the markings it does have seem more like an Asian Lady Beetle.

Thanks!

posted by Right On Red to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

Lady bug. For the reasons you said. No "M" shape on the head where the white bits are.
posted by terrapin at 5:35 AM on June 7, 2019 [1 favorite]

That's like asking whether a particular animal is a cat or a leopard; just as leopards are members of the cat family, Asian ladybeetles are members of the ladybug family.

That said, allowing for the angle it was shot at, your picture does look remarkably similar to the common 19-spot Asian ladybeetles on this page about them.

If that leg sticking out at the front left is reddish, that's a tell as well.
posted by flabdablet at 5:52 AM on June 7, 2019 [3 favorites]

Asian ladybirds don’t always have the M, the best diagnostic for non-experts is size and the underside. They are known for having remarkable variation in coloration and number of spots. But if it’s big and has the reddish undercarriage, it probably is the Asian invader. They are also simply mor more common than natives in many areas, and it always helps to provide location info and scale when seeking ID based on photos.
posted by SaltySalticid at 7:54 AM on June 7, 2019 [1 favorite]