Ladybugs go through several stages before they become adults. They hatch from eggs into the larval stage, where they look more like miniature alligators than cute little ladybugs. After a couple of weeks they enter the pupal stage shown here, where the larva sticks itself onto a plant and the skin splits and protects the pupa underneath. During the next week or so the pupa metamorphoses into an adult and finally emerges as the familiar little beetle we all know and love.
This particular ladybug is a multicolored Asian lady beetle, which is not native to the United States. Ohio State’s extension office has a nice writeup on this (often deliberately) introduced little predator.
