With Summer have come the Lady Bugs (or Ladybirds; family Coccinellidae)
These whimsical-looking predators are plentiful on the citrus, ferns, vegetables, and sunflower trees.
Coccinellids are typically predators of Hemiptera such as aphids and scale insects, though larvae and eggs of their own species can also become prey when alternative food sources are scarce.
Members of the subfamily Epilachninae are herbivores and can be very destructive agricultural pests. Introduced species of Coccinellidae (such as Harmonia axyridis or Coccinella septempunctata in North America) out-compete and displace native Coccinellids and become pests in their own right.
The main predators of Coccinellids are birds, but they are also the prey of frogs, wasps, spiders, and dragonflies. Their bright colors discourage some predators from making them a meal. This phenomenon is called aposematism and works because predators learn by experience to associate certain prey phenotypes with a bad taste.
Another defense is known as reflex bleeding. With reflex bleeding an alkaloid toxin is exuded through the joints of the bug's exoskeleton, triggered by mechanical stimulation (such as a predator attack).
