Ladybug larva

Rosarian, spare that bug! Ladybug larvae may look like tiny alligators, but they are one of the major beneficial insects in your garden, eating aphids and mites and other tiny plant pests. They are also, incidentally, susceptible to most 'organic' insecticides that promise to spare beneficials. So are the larval forms of the other beneficials featured on this page.

Lacewing

Now this baby is a lacewing. You think ladybugs are good, you ain't seen nothin' yet. Lacewings, both green and brown, are the major aphid predators in your garden. Wish I had a photo of the larvae. They are similar to the rose slugs, but with 2 long curved sickles in front for catching and impaling aphids.

And yes, that is rose slug damage on the next leaf to the left! I'm betting lacewings eat rose slugs too!

Syrphid fly

This fly comes in many different species and has many common names - syrphid fly, hover fly, flower fly, bee fly. Look at the eyes, they're huge and triangular, where bees have oval eyes that don't fill up the whole head. And the antennae are short and clublike, just like a house fly's, where bees have elbowed antennae. And only 1 pair of wings! All flies have only 1 pair of wings. Bees have two pairs. And the colors are different too, these flies are distinctly yellow like a wasp, where bees are orange. Plus when you see one in action, no bee can hover and dance like a hover fly can. Bees are slow and clumsy compared to hover flies.

Hover flies are important pollinators, and their larvae are major aphid predators. You like hover flies. I promise they don't sting. Flies don't sting!

Carrion beetle

Carrion beetles are common soil-dwelling insects, and as you might guess from the name, they eat carrion - dead mice, dead birds, things like that. We should all be grateful to the cleanup crew.

Wireworm

Wireworms are the larval forms of click beetles. They live in the soil, and some at least bore into roots and tubers and rhizomes. They can be pests of things like irises and potatoes, but for the most part they can be left alone. Click beetles are cute and fun, after all.