- Lifespan
- 1–2 years in the wild, occasionally living through to a second year after hibernation
- Size & Weight
- 7–8 mm in length; 0.08–0.12 g
- Habitat
- Gardens, parks, hedgerows, and farmland with abundant aphid populations, particularly on herbaceous plants and shrubs.
- UK Distribution
- Common throughout England, Wales, and southern Scotland; resident year-round, though populations are bolstered by migratory individuals from continental Europe in autumn.
- Diet
- Primarily feeds on aphids, with a single ladybird consuming up to 60 aphids per day during the growing season.
- Prey
- Aphids (Aphididae), occasionally small soft-bodied insects and pollen
- Predators
- Ground beetles, robber flies, spiders, and occasionally birds such as robins and blue tits; parasitoid wasps also attack larvae and pupae
- Mating Season
- April to September, with peak mating in late spring
- Breeding
- Females lay 200–400 eggs in clusters on host plants; eggs hatch in 3–5 days; larvae develop through four instars over 10–14 days; pupation lasts 5–8 days. Two to three generations per year in the UK.
- Behaviour
- Highly gregarious, particularly during autumn when large aggregations gather to overwinter in sheltered sites such as under bark, leaf litter, and buildings. Adults are active foragers and are among the first beneficial insects to appear in spring. They communicate through pheromones and release a foul-smelling defensive secretion when threatened.