Common Names
The official common name for this lady beetle is the elevenspotted lady beetle.

Scientific Name
Coccinella undecimpunctata (L.)

• Elytra (hardened forewings) are red-orange with 11 black spots, five on each elytron and one forming centrally and anteriorly when the elyta are closed.
• 4.0 to 5.0 mm in length.

Note: The body of the elevenspotted lady beetle is more elongate than any other species of Coccinella, and is distinctive enough that it should not easily be confused with other lady beetles.

Habitat

This lady beetle is found in a wide range of non-forest habitats such as croplands, fields, suburban lawns, dune grasses, and gardens.

Invasion History

The elevenspotted lady beetle is native through Europe and much of central Asia. It is the first aphid predator that was accidently introduced into North America; becoming established in Massachusetts in 1912. The elevenspotted lady beetle spread along the American Atlantic seaboard and the St. Lawrence River waterway from Ohio to the Maritime Provinces and Newfoundland, and later to British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. At one time it was the most common lady beetle in New York and New Jersey, but later disappeared. It is currently a less common non-native lady beetle, though it continues to persist.

Regional Sightings

The elevenspotted lady beetle has been recorded in Nova Scotia since 1945. It is present in all the Maritime Provinces, but is not very abundant.

Potential Impacts

Introduced species can have huge economic and environmental costs, and can dramatically affect distribution, abundance and reproduction of native species. Recently, ecologists and conservation biologists have voiced serious concerns over negative impacts that introduced species are having on Canada’s ecosystems, placing their threat second to habitat destruction.