Harmonia quadripunctata, Cream-streaked Ladybird

Common Name: Cream-streaked Ladybird

Harmonia quadripunctata, more commonly known as the cream-streaked ladybird, can reach a length of 5.5–6mm. The colouration is very variable; usually they are coloured bright red or yellow and have eight black dots on the elytra, with basal and lateral pale stripes. Some individuals with greatly expanded dark patches appear almost completely black. On the pronotum they usually have 11 black spots on a light background, with four or five larger black spots in the middle.

This species is quite similar to H. axyridis, but in H. quadripunctata the small distinct humps before elytral apex and the M-like black painting on the pronotum, common in the reddish coloured specimen, are absent.

It is a predator of various species of aphids such as Lachnus pinicola. The period of activity extends from March to October. These beetles over-winter in communities under the bark of various deciduous and coniferous trees such as pines and poplars.

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