Twenty-two-spot Ladybird

Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata is a ladybird in Coccinellidae, commonly known as the Twenty-two-spot Ladybird. [1][5]

Adults are about 3–4 mm long, with lemon-yellow wing covers bearing rounded black spots. The pronotum is yellow or white with five dark marks; the legs are brown. The elytral spots are generally separate rather than fused into angular patches. [2]

British records are widespread in low vegetation, including grasslands and roadside verges. Northumbrian records include coastal and inland Northumberland and County Durham. [2]

A Turkish laboratory colony fed only Erysiphe cichoracearum completed egg-to-adult development in 26.7–28.4 days at 25±2°C, 70±5% relative humidity and a 12:12-hour light-dark cycle. [3]

Adults and larvae graze powdery mildew. Recorded feeding substrates include mildew-infected oak leaves and cucurbit foliage. [4][3]

British populations overwinter low in herbage and sometimes in ivy. [2]

In the laboratory oak-leaf choice experiment, adults grazed more mildew from leaves of trees supplied with less water. After 96 hours, average consumption was 4.61 cm² of mildew per beetle across the available leaf segments. [4]

In the Belgian field experiment, neighbouring tree-species richness had a more positive effect on mildew grazing during the later, drier monitoring periods and under reduced rainfall. [4]

Linnaeus described the species in 1758. [5]

Keep the enclosure closed and display it in indirect light, away from heat and damp conditions. Handle the frame by its edges and clean only its exterior according to the maker’s instructions.