Ladybugs can deliberately release a little of their own blood when attacked, in a process called reflex bleeding. When predators taste the extremely bitter, bright orange-yellow blood, they learn to associate the bright colors of the ladybug with an undesirable meal. Alas, not this shield bug, which is immune to the toxins in the ladybug “s blood, and so reduces our little aphid-killing friend to a desiccated corpse.
1. Lightly draw the center line and sides of the bug.
2. Divide thorax and abdomen, and draw the scutellum.
3. Add front wings (hiding the hind wings). The thickened base is called the corium, the thinner end the membrane.
4. Draw head, eyes, and checkered sides of the abdomen.
5. Add legs, beak and antennae.
6. Finish your drawing with shading, texture, and (of course!) the victim.