📸 PhotoPhoto: Unknown (Posted by -- gian_d ) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons Source
Vedalia beetle
Rodolia cardinalis (Vedalia beetle · ベダリアテントウ)
Not Evaluated (NE) on the IUCN Red List yet.
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 A body length of 3 mm is 1/6 the diameter of a Korean 10-won coin (18 mm in diameter) (Comparison).
- 💡 ADW notes that California citrus growers buy overwintering swarms of this beetle by the bushel and release them into orchards in spring to control cottony cushion scales instead of using pesticides.
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The vedalia beetle is a ladybird beetle that preys on cottony cushion scales and is used as a natural enemy to control pests in citrus orchards.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
Its body is broadly oval to nearly spherical, strongly convex on the back and nearly flat on the underside. Its head has short antennae and is partly or completely hidden by the pronotum; females are deep red while males are darker.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
Both adults and larvae voraciously feed on scale insects such as cottony cushion scales and aphids. Females lay red eggs on the egg sacs of cottony cushion scales, and in winter adults gather in large swarms under fallen leaves or bark to overwinter.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
It is listed as 'Be-dal-li-a-mu-dang-beol-le' (Korean name) on the National List of Species of Korea.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List: not evaluated (NE) — cross-checked with the Wikidata conservation-status entry
- • checklistbank.org — S983C
- • 국가생물종목록(국립생물자원관) ktsn 120000016002 — https://species.nibr.go.kr/home/mainHome.do?cont_link=009&subMenu=009002&contCd=009002&ktsn=120000016002
- • wikidata.org — Q2235176
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Rodolia cardinalis.jpg
- • ipm.ucanr.edu — vedalia beetle.html
- • animaldiversity.org — Rodolia cardinalis
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Amy Beauvois · CC0 1.0 (Related taxon silhouette — Coccinella)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.