There are lots of myths around the world about ladybugs and their spots.

If a ladybug lands on you in Brussels, the spots on that ladybug tells you how many children you will have.

Many farmers around the world have believed that the spots on a ladybug tells the fortune of the next harvest, if there are less than seven spots, the harvest will be good.

Some people believe that if a ladybug lands on you, you can count the spots and you will soon receive dollars in the same amount as the spots.

In reality, lots of animals, including ladybugs, need a way to protect themselves.  Some animals have with natural tools for escape (like strong legs for running for powerful fins for swimming).  Other animals have defense strategies like stingers or sharp teeth or spiky quills, while still others rely on their ability to hide or camouflage.

When it comes to ladybugs, most entomologists (bug scientists) think the spots are their special form of protection!  

In nature, lots of things with bright colors signal “yucky” or even “poison” to a hungry predator. The colorful and recognizable spotted look of a ladybug is probably a sign to other animals that the ladybug won’t taste good and might even be poisonous.

A ladybug’s body has a substance in it that tastes really bad to birds and other predators, and it is a little bit poisonous.  Probably not poisonous enough to kill a bird, but enough to make it pretty sick for a while.

Once a bird eats the first ladybug it will get so sick that it won’t ever want to eat another one, and it will remember the unique colors and spots of the ladybug and stay far away from them.

Although you and I might think the spots make ladybugs look pretty, it makes other creatures think they should look somewhere else for their snack!