- Cassiculus venustus
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Cassiculus venustus 
Card mounted specimen from arthropod collection Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Coleoptera Family: Coccinellidae Genus: Cassiculus Species: C. venustus Binomial name Cassiculus venustus The flax ladybird (Cassiculus venustus) is a species of ladybird beetle that is native to New Zealand, being found at least in the North Island.[1] It can be found on New Zealand flax (Phormium) and Toetoe (cutty grass), reportedly eating the mealybugs that live there.[1] The valid name of the species is now Hoangus venustus (see Wikispecies link for details).
The species' colouration is black and orange: its head is orange on each side with black running down the middle, while its elytra or wing cases (which cover the back) are orange around the edge with black covering much of the area. It has four orange dots on this black area, two on each elytron. It is about 4mm long from the tip of the head to the end of the abdomen (description based on a life-size photo in Andrew Crowe's Which New Zealand Insect).[1]
See also
- Coccinella leonina, another native ladybird
References
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