Red-flanked scymnus
Scymnus interruptus
The red-flanked scymnus is a tiny ladybird from Europe. People brought it to the United States on purpose to help farmers. From there it spread to other parts of the Americas.
Lives in
Europe, now also North America and South America
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It is a tiny ladybird that does not bite or sting.
What does it eat?
Like its ladybird cousins, it eats tiny plant pests such as aphids.
How fast is it?
A kid running fast about 13 km/h (8.1 mph)
A grown-up on a bike about 25 km/h (16 mph)
Red-flanked scymnus about 30 km/h (19 mph)
A car driving in town about 50 km/h (31 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
It was taken to the United States to eat plant pests, so farmers did not need sprays.
2
From the United States it spread on its own to other parts of the Americas.
3
It has even been found as far south as Chile and Ecuador.
you asked
Most asked questions about Red-flanked scymnus
?Why was the red-flanked scymnus brought to America?
To help farmers by eating tiny plant pests.
?Is the red-flanked scymnus dangerous?
No. It is a tiny, harmless ladybird.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Scymnus interruptus
- Group
- Ladybirds
- Family
- Coccinellidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Coleoptera > Coccinellidae
- Lives on
- Europe, North America, South America
Where the facts come from
- Scymnus interruptus (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Gilles San Martin. CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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