Find out WHY - Yes, Asian Lady bugs bite

Type: Interesting

Description:
Our beloved native lady bugs rarely bite, but the Multicolored Asian Lady beetle, ain't no Lady! Harmonia axyridis will bite particularly when under duress from lack of prey or dehydration. While still technically harmless, they don't generally draw blood, they don't carry parasites, they don't inject toxins, some people can be allergic to them depending on individual biochemistry. I explain how to distinguish invasive Asian Lady Beetles from our beneficial native Lady Beetles. The Asian invaders always have a clear white M on their pronotum while native lady beetles have a black pronotum with a white spot on either side. Only Asian lady beetles mass in large groups. The Multicolored Asian Lady beetle gets its name from the wide variation in colors and numbers of spots. Asian Lady beetles are also known as Harlequin Beetles or Halloween beetles...because the often show up in large numbers in peoples homes around Halloween. (Autumn). I show viewers how I tried unsuccessfully to encourage the lady beetles to bite me as I wanted to learn more, first hand, about their bites. It appears Asian lady beetles when under pressure of large numbers and lack of resources, will aggressively become opportunists and try to find other sources of nutrition or water.

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Video length: 12:21