Ladybugs, or Lady Beetles as they are otherwise known, are beloved by nature lovers for their color and by farmers for their powerful appetites. These worldwide ranging beetles feed on other insects, particularly those that harm crops.
History
Ladybug might be their favorite name, but it wasn’t their first name, and it’s certainly not the most accurate. First off, these colorful creatures technically aren’t bugs; rather, they are beetles, as they go through a larval stage. But those are fine details. What about the Lady part of Ladybugs? That’s an even more interesting story. The beetles aren’t all females, obviously, and they don’t have any particularly feminine traits. However, they do have a stunning shade of red, which is also the color most often associated with one well-known lady: The Virgin Mary. In paintings, she was often distinguished by a red cloak, so much so that the color became something of her trademark. Enter a red beetle that seems to have insect eating abilities of biblical proportions, and, well, the rest is history: the Ladybug.