SP341-Z Mexican Bean Beetle

The Mexican bean beetle, Epilachna varivestis Mulsant, is the most injurious insect pest of beans. The adults are 1/4 to 1/3 inch long, slightly oval and yellowish with 16 black spots on their wing covers (elytra). The adults look like large ladybird beetles and are classified in the ladybird beetle family, Coccinellidae. While the Mexican bean beetle and the closely related squash beetle feed on plants, other ladybird beetle species prey on insects and mites.