Pupa of Kidney-spot Ladybird

[Bruce Williams]

Stony Stratford, Bucks.

I thought I'd post this thread for two reasons. Firstly I thought some of our members might be interested to see what this pupa looks like (it's the only one I've found todate) and secondly, I understand that the pupa of the Pine Ladybird is very similar so I was hoping for confirmation of my id.

Photos of the pupa:


Here's a couple of photos of the larva that I posted to the Gallery about a week ago:


This is an interesting pupa as the larval skin splits longditudinally exposing just part of the pupa. While watching the pupa through the camera viewfinder you can see it pulsing gently. I understand that when the skin first splits the pupa case is bright red. This is also the case with the Harlequin (and maybe other species) - if you're interested, I posted a couple of photos to the Gallery last year showing the red stage and the black stage of the same Harlequin pupa.


Bruce

[sunnydale]

Originally Posted by Bruce Williams

Firstly I thought some of our members might be interested to see what this pupa looks like


Here's a couple of photos of the larva that I posted to the Gallery about a week ago:

Well, I for one have never seen ladybird pupa or larva, so these shots are really fascinating.

Thanks for posting them Bruce.

Tracey

[Bruce Williams]

Thanks for your interest Tracey . I have been keeping an eye on the pupa (last checked this afternoon) to see how long before the adult emerges.

Bruce

[Bumderess]

Me neither, i don't know where i expected ladybirds to come from!!! So for me these are very interesting. Thanks

[Bruce Williams]

I'm very pleased that my pics were of interest Bumberess .

I checked again yesterday and found another Kidney-spot ladybird pupa close-by - so I'll be keeping an eye on both of them fro now on. I guess it'd be too much to hope to catch the adults emerging....but fingers crossed.

Bruce

[Bumderess]

Hi Bruce,
I'll be keeping my eye on this thread. Looking forward to more updates and pics.
Thanks
Nic

[Bruce Williams]

Thanks Nic .

By way of an update: the pupa in my original pic was still unchanged as at 4pm this afternoon (Thursday). However another Kidney-spot pupa that I discovered close by is now empty, so I guess it won't be long now (I'll check again tomorrow).

Out of interest here's a pic of the empty pupa case:



I included the second pic as the inside of the pupa case is out of focus which makes it easier to make out the 3D structure.

Bruce

[Bruce Williams]

Just for the sake of accuracy....my last check on state of pupa and the pics of the empty pupa case were taken on Friday not Thursday as I wrote in the preceding post.

Bruce

[Bumderess]

Any updates Bruce?

[Bruce Williams]

Nic - The pupa was still there on Sunday which seems an awfully long time to me. Unusually I didn't have my camera with me - decided to give my dog Maggy all my attention for a change - but I'll take the camera tomorrow and photograph it again to check that it's ok.

Bruce