With their cheery red shells and cheeky black polka dots, ladybugs are bugs even non-bug lovers can get behind. They fascinate children, bring good luck and inspire countless Halloween costumes.

A ladybird's lifecycle has four stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Egg - Ladybirds lay eggs one or more times a year (species vary), in batches of up to 40. They are yellow or orange and will ...

The larvae then develop, pupate and hatch as adults. Max Barclay, Senior Curator of Beetles at the Museum, says, 'There are a number of species of ladybirds that hibernate in big clusters. Ancestrally ...

The ladybug’s tiny head ... lays clutches of five to 10 eggs right in the middle of aphid infestations so that its larval offspring, when they emerge a few days later, have plenty of food ...