Ladybird beetle 

Description

Novius cardinalis (Syn. Rodolia cardinalis) (common names vedalia beetle or cardinal ladybird) is a species of ladybird beetle native to Australia. It was formerly placed in the genus Rodolia, but that genus was synonymized under the genus Novius in 2020. The adult has a semispherical body, 2-4 millimetres (5⁄64-5⁄32 in) long, covered with dense, short hairs. It is reddish-purple with black spots localized in several parts of its body, forming a net of contours between the spots. The head, posterior part of the prothorax across the full width, and the scutellum are all black. There are typically five black spots on the elytron. Four of those are arranged on the dorso-lateral part of the elytron. The two anterior spots form an roughly half-moon shaped oval with the convexity directed towards the suture of the elytron. The two posterior ones make a more irregular shape, formed by the intersection of two circular spots. Finally, the fifth spot covers the length of the elytron's suture, enlarging towards the posterior stretch. The antenna are short and slightly clubbed, composed of 8 items, of which the proximal is markedly pulled aside. The legs have an extended and irregularly flattened tibia, forming a space housing the tarsus when at rest. The tarsus is composed of 3 tarsomeres, as in all coccinellids. The larva is around 5 millimetres (25⁄128 in) long, reddish as the mature beetle or greyish, with black spots on the thorax. The left side has a series of tubercles, each bearing short bristles. The pupa is 4-5 millimetres (5⁄32-25⁄128 in) long. It is a red which darkens with age in as the abdomen darkens. N. cardinalis regularly feed on aphids and small mites, which makes them good as biological control agents. They are only predatory to things smaller than them. Most of their food is herbivores, as carnivores are more likely to injure them as they are slow. Their flying capacities are limited so hunting in the air is not possible. It is an active predator of cottony cushion scale Icerya purchasi. Novius cardinalis is widespread to all continents except Antarctica: America (US, Central America, Caribbean, South America, from Venezuela to Chile and Argentina), Europe (Iberian Peninsula, France, Italy, Balkans, Russia), in Asia (Japan, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Taiwan, Siberia), in Africa (northern Africa, South Africa), in Oceania (Hawaii, Guam) and, of course, in its home region, Australia.