Bug FAQSix-spotted Zigzag Ladybird
Cheilomenes sexmaculata · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Coccinellidae
Also called: Ladybird beetle, Six-spotted Zigzag Lady Beetle, Six-spotted Zigzag Ladybird Beetle
The six-spotted zigzag ladybird is a tiny beetle about 3 to 4 mm long. It lives across the Asian tropics and subtropics from India to Japan and into parts of the Australian region. It feeds on many pest insects such as whiteflies, aphids, scale insects and diaspids.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Elytral colour is controlled by two genes (U-u and D-d) producing four main varieties: quadriplagiata, unifasciata, diversijunata and sexmaculata.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure roughly three to four millimetres in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
The species is found throughout the Asian tropical and subtropical zones, from India eastward to Japan and into parts of the Australian region.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
It is a voracious predator of several whiteflies and aphids, and also consumes scale insects and diaspids.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range covers the same Asian tropical and subtropical areas from India to Japan and parts of Australia.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Some colour forms can be mistaken for Micraspis discolor or Chilocorus nigrita.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 3 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Illinois, Texas, Washington.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: introduced in United States. Source: iNaturalist
More photos
Questions people ask
Same family (Coccinellidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheilomenes_sexmaculata
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.