It is that time of year again and as the aphid population swells, so will that of the ladybug.  The insect itself has a fairly strange life cycle and here it is for you in all its wonderful gory, sorry, glory.

The male has an insect penis which is called an aedeagus. A “lock and key” fit means that if he gets it wrong and tries to mate with another species of ladybug, he will not get to third base! Fertilization, as you can see, is internal, which surprises many people. It doesn’t exactly start with a kiss, but with a little Barry White in the background this could almost be classed as romantic! Almost, but not quite!

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by taliesyn30.