Beneficial Garden Bugs of the SC Lowcountry

A guide to some of the common beneficial Insects(as well as Myriapods, Isopods, Molluscs) that you may encounter in your gardens.

All of the species in this guide either prey on other insects during one or more of its life stages, or is a detritivore, an organism that breaks down dead ...more ↓

All 107

Taxonomy
« Back To Winged and Once-winged Insects Subclass Pterygota
- Beetles Order Coleoptera
  - 11 Ground and Water Beetles Suborder Adephaga
  - 25 Water, Rove, Scarab, Long-horned, Leaf, and Snout Beetles Suborder Polyphaga

Margined Tiger Beetle ¹
Ellipsoptera marginata

Eastern Beach Tiger Beetle ²
Habroscelimorpha dorsalis

Punctured Tiger Beetle ³
Cicindela punctulata

S-banded Tiger Beetle ⁴
Cicindela trifasciata

Bronzed Tiger Beetle ⁵
Cicindela repanda

Festive Tiger Beetle ⁶
Cicindela scutellaris

Six-spotted Tiger Beetle ⁷
Cicindela sexguttata

Carolina Metallic Tiger Beetle ⁸
Tetracha carolina

Big-headed Ground Beetle ⁹
Scarites subterraneus

Fiery Searcher Beetle ¹⁰
Calosoma scrutator

Black Caterpillar Hunter Beetle ¹¹
Calosoma sayi

Spotted Lady Beetle ¹²
Coleomegilla maculata

Ashy Gray Lady Beetle ¹³
Olla v-nigrum

Asian Lady Beetle ¹⁴
Harmonia axyridis

Convergent Lady Beetle ¹⁵
Hippodamia convergens

Seven-spotted Lady Beetle ¹⁵
Coccinella septempunctata

Polished Lady Beetle ¹⁵
Cycloneda munda

Spotless Lady Beetle ¹⁶
Cycloneda sanguinea

Twenty-spotted Lady Beetle ¹⁵
Psyllobora vigintimaculata

Mealybug Destroyer ¹⁷
Cryptolaemus montrouzieri

Twice-stabbed Lady Beetle ¹⁸
Chilocorus stigma

Pyractomena borealis ⁷

Black Firefly ¹⁵
Lucidota atra

Common Eastern Firefly ¹⁵
Photinus pyralis

Devil's Coach Horse Beetle ¹⁹
Ocypus olens

Brown Rove Beetle ²⁰
Platydracus maculosus

Carolina Burying Beetle ²¹
Nicrophorus carolinus

Pustulated Carrion Beetle ²²
Nicrophorus pustulatus

American Carrion Beetle ²³
Necrophila americana

Carolina Copris ⁵
Dichotomius carolinus

Small Black Dung Beetle ²⁴
Copris minutus

Scooped Scarab ²⁵
Onthophagus hecate

Gazelle Scarab ²⁶
Digitonthophagus gazella

Black Phanaeus ²⁷
Phanaeus triangularis

Rainbow Scarab ²⁸
Phanaeus vindex

Humpback Dung Beetle ²⁹
Deltochilum gibbosum

Edited by Ryan Watson, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

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Beneficial Garden Bugs of the SC Lowcountry

Margined Tiger Beetle 1 Ellipsoptera marginata

Eastern Beach Tiger Beetle 2 Habroscelimorpha dorsalis

Punctured Tiger Beetle 3 Cicindela punctulata

S-banded Tiger Beetle 4 Cicindela trifasciata

Bronzed Tiger Beetle 5 Cicindela repanda

Festive Tiger Beetle 6 Cicindela scutellaris

Six-spotted Tiger Beetle 7 Cicindela sexguttata

Carolina Metallic Tiger Beetle 8 Tetracha carolina

Big-headed Ground Beetle 9 Scarites subterraneus

Fiery Searcher Beetle 10 Calosoma scrutator

Black Caterpillar Hunter Beetle 11 Calosoma sayi

Spotted Lady Beetle 12 Coleomegilla maculata

Ashy Gray Lady Beetle 13 Olla v-nigrum

Asian Lady Beetle 14 Harmonia axyridis

Convergent Lady Beetle 15 Hippodamia convergens

Seven-spotted Lady Beetle 15 Coccinella septempunctata

Polished Lady Beetle 15 Cycloneda munda

Spotless Lady Beetle 16 Cycloneda sanguinea

Twenty-spotted Lady Beetle 15 Psyllobora vigintimaculata

Mealybug Destroyer 17 Cryptolaemus montrouzieri

Twice-stabbed Lady Beetle 18 Chilocorus stigma

Pyractomena borealis 7

Black Firefly 15 Lucidota atra

Common Eastern Firefly 15 Photinus pyralis

Devil's Coach Horse Beetle 19 Ocypus olens

Brown Rove Beetle 20 Platydracus maculosus

Carolina Burying Beetle 21 Nicrophorus carolinus

Pustulated Carrion Beetle 22 Nicrophorus pustulatus

American Carrion Beetle 23 Necrophila americana

Carolina Copris 5 Dichotomius carolinus

Small Black Dung Beetle 24 Copris minutus

Scooped Scarab 25 Onthophagus hecate

Gazelle Scarab 26 Digitonthophagus gazella

Black Phanaeus 27 Phanaeus triangularis

Rainbow Scarab 28 Phanaeus vindex

Humpback Dung Beetle 29 Deltochilum gibbosum