Home ​​​​>​​​​ Knowledge Center​​​​

The most famous species is Stethorus punctillum. It occurs naturally in cultivated crops, both in open fields and in greenhouses. The bug is found in Africa, Europe, North Asia, South Asia and North America. Due to its particularly small size, it is often overlooked. They can sometimes be scattered on a tree or shrub in greater quantities.

Stethorus is increasingly found naturally in Dutch greenhouses. Stethorus is still unknown to many growers. As a result, it is regularly seen as a pest, while it is an effective control against spider mites.

You can recognize Stethorus by the oval-shaped black skin and the yellow mouth parts and antennae, with a yellow to brownish-yellow color on the legs. The adult predatory beetles are about 1.5 millimeters in size. The larvae of Stethorus resemble a miniature version of the common ladybug larvae. The adult Stethorus also resembles a ladybug, as it belongs to the same family. Stethorus is completely black and smaller than the ladybug. Females can lay up to 200 eggs. These cylindrical eggs are laid between spider eggs.

Stethorus is a real spider mite fighter. All spider mites are on the menu of Stethorus. Both the larvae and the adults can eat up to 40 spider mites per day. In some countries Stethorus is commercially available as a biological control agent. This is not yet the case in the Netherlands.

Read more about how to control spider mites.

Stethorus can tolerate high temperatures and low humidity well and is therefore a good addition/alternative to Phytoseiulus. Stethorus develops well between 20 and 30 °C and with an RH of 30 to 90%.

Stethorus grows from egg to adult in 18 days at 21 °C. After that, the adult Stethorus lives another 7 weeks. These adults can fly and actively look for new spider spots.

Can't find your answer? Fill out the contact form and our specialist Jan-Paul de Wit will get back to you. On weekdays, even within 24 hours.