I had a ladybug on my hand a week ago and half an hour later I had a bite on my hand. Right where it had been. Everyone says it can’t be done, but I keep going. Is that possible?
Asker: Billy, 13 years old
Answer
Dear Billy,
Although ladybugs are formidable predators that hunt aphids, among other things, they cannot bite through human skin with their mouthparts. The bite on your hand is therefore not from that ladybug. Perhaps that bite wasn’t a bite, though, but an allergic reaction. Ladybugs have a habit of excreting licorice when stressed, and that may have irritated your skin, giving you the impression you had an insect bite.
Kind regards,
Thierry Backeljau
Answered by
dr. Thierry Backeljau
Biology
Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
Rue Vautier 29 1000 Brussels
http://www.naturalsciences.be
Rue Vautier 29 1000 Brussels
http://www.naturalsciences.be
.