BENEFICIAL INSECTS, PREDACEOUS AND PARASITIC. 31 



plant-lice and scale insects. Of such value are those 

 feeding upon scale insects that not many years ago a large 

 number of Australian species were imported into California 

 that they might prey upon the San Jose and other scales. 

 One of these was eminently successful and almost com- 

 pletely destroyed the Cottony Cushion-scale. 



Of those feeding upon plant-lice, one of the most 

 common is the Xine-spotted Ladybird (Coccinella novem- 

 notata). This beetle is about one-fourth of an inch long, 

 with black head and body. The wing-covers are orange- 

 yellow marked with nine black spots — four on each side 

 and one on the central suture. The larva has been fancied 

 to resemble a miniature alligator; it is nearly twice as 

 long as wide, almost black, marked with bluish and orange 

 spots, and has long legs, which carry it around quite 

 rapidly. The beetles hibernate during the winter and 

 come forth in the scoring and lay their eggs wherever the 

 young will be able to find food when they hatch. When 

 the larva has satisfied its ravenous appetite and become 

 full grown it fastens itself to the food-plant — seemingly 

 by its tail, if such a term might be alloAved, — transforms 

 to the pupa, and in a week or ten days the adult beetle 

 emerges from the pupal skin. This life- cycle is repeated 

 several times during the summer season, before the fall 

 brood turns into winter quarters. 



Another very common form among plant-lice on garden 

 truck is the little Adalia hipundatiu or Tw^o-spotted Lady- 

 bird. It is slightly smaller than the preceding, and with 

 only one black spot on each wing-cover (Fig. 11). 



Several other species in the genus Hippodamia are very 

 useful, and among them the Convergent Ladybird 

 {^Hippodamia convevgens) is one of the best known. Its 



