Why is "Ladybug" a bad name for those red insects with black spots?
A couple of folks got this question right (we'll post their names and photos as soon as we get 'em!), and a couple others gave us an answer we hadn't even considered!
"Ladybugs" are not "true bugs." True bugs belong to the order of insects called Hemiptera which means half-wing. They all have a triangular pattern in their wings which often looks like a shield. Ladybugs - more properly called "Lady Bird Beetles" - have the hard, shell-like outer wings of beetles. Beetles are in the order Coleoptera which means sheath-wing.
Other differences between beetles and true bugs are:
That - or some part of it - is the answer we expected. But BUGMAN fans are more clever than that! A few said that since they aren't all female, they can't be "Ladybugs!" Touché! And great job!