[4] The "vedalia beetle" came to public attention as an effective biological control agent against cottony cushion scale, a serious pest of citrus plantations.

The adult has a domed oval body, flattened underneath, 2.5–4 millimetres (0.10–0.16 in) long, covered with dense, short hairs.

The beetle's young larvae eat the scale insect's eggs; older larvae and adults eat all lifecycle stages of the scale insect.

[5] The pupa is 4–5 millimetres (0.16–0.20 in) long;[citation needed] its case is off-white.

[5] An outbreak of cottony cushion scale in California led to the importation of 514 "vedalia beetles" from Australia in 1888 as a biological control agent to protect plantations of citrus trees.