Bug FAQCactus Lady Beetle
Chilocorus cacti · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Coccinellidae
The adult is a small, dome-shaped beetle about 6 mm long with a glossy black back marked by two reddish-brown spots and a burnt-orange underside. It lives on prickly-pear cacti and many trees such as coconut palms, and it is native to the Caribbean, the southern United States, Mexico, Central and South America. Both adults and larvae hunt scale insects and also feed on the citrus pest psyllid Diaphorina citri.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The beetle’s back is glossy black with two large reddish-brown spots, and its belly is burnt orange, unlike the black underside of C. stigma.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults are dome-shaped and reach up to 6 mm (0.24 in) in length.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Both adults and larvae are predators that feed on scale insects. They also consume other pests such as the citrus psyllid Diaphorina citri.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Eggs are laid near suitable prey and hatch in about ten days. Larvae feed for roughly 17 days before pupating, and adults emerge about 13 days later.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It looks similar to the lady beetle Chilocorus stigma.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 17 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Florida, Arizona, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Georgia, California.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How big is a Cactus Lady Beetle?
Adults are dome-shaped and grow up to about 6 mm (0.24 in) long.
Source: Wikipedia
What does the Cactus Lady Beetle look like?
It has a glossy black back with two large reddish-brown spots and a burnt-orange underside.
Source: Wikipedia
Where can I find Cactus Lady Beetles?
They are commonly seen on prickly-pear cacti and on trees such as coconut palms.
Source: Wikipedia
What do Cactus Lady Beetles eat?
Both adults and larvae prey on scale insects and also feed on the citrus psyllid Diaphorina citri.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Coccinellidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilocorus_cacti
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.