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Australian Wildlife

  Mealybug Ladybird (Cryptolaemus montrouzieri)





Mealybug Ladybird | Cryptolaemus montrouzieri photo
Mealybug ladybird on milkweed plant

Photograph copyright: ozwildlife - all rights reserved. Used with permission.

Mealybug Ladybird | Cryptolaemus montrouzieri photo
Mealybug ladybird on milkweed plant

Photograph copyright: ozwildlife - all rights reserved. Used with permission.







MEALYBUG LADYBIRD FACTS

Identification
The adults are greenish black with reddish brown head and thorax, and the rear end of the abdomen is also reddish brown. The body is covered in short fine hairs. The larvae are white and resemble the white mealy bugs they feed on. The eggs are yellow.

Other Names
Mealybug Destroyer

Size
adult 4mm; larva 5mm

Habitat
shrubs and trees

Food
the larvae feed on mealybugs and other soft bugs. These ladybirds were exported from Australia to the United States in 1891 to control citrus mealybug in California.

Breeding
Mealybug Ladybirds lay yellow eggs on food plants. The eggs hatch into carnivorous larvae, then pupate before hatching out as adults.



Classification
Class:Insecta
Order:Coleoptera
Family:Coccinellidae
Genus:Cryptolaemus
Species:montrouzieri
Common Name:Mealybug Ladybird