beetles. 
19 
THE LADY-BUG. 
This is a favorite insect. It is often known as 
the “ lady-bird ” or “ lady-bird-beetle.” Lady- 
beetles may be known by their handsome elytra, 
which are black, with scarlet or yellow dots; or 
scarlet or yellow, with black or brown dots. In 
shape they are almost perfect hemispheres, and their 
shining wing-covers are so smooth as to make it 
rather difficult to pick them up. When disturbed, 
they emit a very disagreeable odor, which is de¬ 
signed as a protection against enemies. The lady- 
bug passes through its changes in a manner quite 
peculiar to itself. When ready to change, it fastens 
its abdomen firmly to a twig or leaf. 
The lady-beetles are friendly to the plants. In 
this they are quite unlike the potato-beetle, which 
destroys acres of potato plants, if let alone. The 
food of the lady-beetle is plant-lice. Thus, by 
feeding on the enemies of the plants, these beautiful 
insects prove themselves among the best friends of 
the plants. 
It is a very interesting sight to see a lady-beetle 
seize and devour the plant-lice which infest most 
of the plants of our gardens. 
Many people ignorantly kill lady-beetles, because 
they find them on the rose-bushes and other plants 
in summer. 
The lady-beetle also has enemies. The most in¬ 
teresting one is a parasite, which lays its eggs upon 
