Surreybirder
Ken Noble
I'll attach a couple. It was about 3 mms long. ID is only a guess as there are so many species.
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The Ladybird thread (5 Viewers)
- Thread starter Andy Bright
- Start date
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Just seen a post on the Facebook uk ladybird group that someone found 10 spp of ladybird on gravestones in an Edinburgh graveyard today! Including 2 would be lifers for me (18-spot and Larch)
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Just epaulet today. I must visit Edinburgh one winter.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
I had a decidedly unproductive day yesterday, mostly doing shed loads of Ivy. Just a few Eppies and Harlies for me and a couple of 22's
Steve Babbs
Well-known member
Inspired by this, I just tried my nearest cemetery. My first trip looking specifically for ladybirds rather than insects in general. Not one.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
It's so weird how it seems to vary so much from place to place. Where abouts are you Steve?
Steve Babbs
Well-known member
Ipswich. Lots of the monuments looked like they could have come out of a book on finding ladybirds: old with lots of crevices.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Much in the way of "useful " trees in the graveyard?
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Another fruitless search of a reedbed today. It's hard to tell whether I'm not good at spotting water ladybirds or whether they are uncommon in my area. There is one 'tick' in a square km near me but I think it must be on private land. (At least I found my first siskins of the winter so it wasn't completely unproductive!)
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
They might be easier to find by visual search when it gets warm (if they're there). Scanning the reeds is a bit like seawatching 🤨
Steve Babbs
Well-known member
Quite a mixture and lots of ivy around the edge.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Ah, seawatching in a reed bed is a new thought!
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Just can't seem to find that elusive #20 for the year!
Today's Bristol highlight was my 2nd Red-headed Rhyzobius of the year, found in a bush that also produced 4 Round-keeled Rhyzobius, one Pine Ladybird, two 7-spots, and one Harlequin.
Of interest (at least to me!) was how unusually large the Red-headed Rhyzobius appeared. Due to its bulkier shape it appeared the same size as the Round-keeled. When measured later crawling around on squared paper it was seen to be about 2.5mm long (book says 2mm) and two Round-keeleds with it measured only marginally longer (book says 2.5 - 3.5mm).
Lots of bashing elsewhere produced only a couple of 22-spots and a couple more Round-keeled Rhyzobius. Looking forward to it getting warmer 🙂
Pics later (I hope) on the Facebook page.
Today's Bristol highlight was my 2nd Red-headed Rhyzobius of the year, found in a bush that also produced 4 Round-keeled Rhyzobius, one Pine Ladybird, two 7-spots, and one Harlequin.
Of interest (at least to me!) was how unusually large the Red-headed Rhyzobius appeared. Due to its bulkier shape it appeared the same size as the Round-keeled. When measured later crawling around on squared paper it was seen to be about 2.5mm long (book says 2mm) and two Round-keeleds with it measured only marginally longer (book says 2.5 - 3.5mm).
Lots of bashing elsewhere produced only a couple of 22-spots and a couple more Round-keeled Rhyzobius. Looking forward to it getting warmer 🙂
Pics later (I hope) on the Facebook page.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
In at #20 for the year today: 14-spot Ladybird. Perhaps surprisingly late to the party.
Found during a two-hour search of ivy hoping for Horseshoe Ladybird at Brandon Hill. Only others found were two 10-spots, a Harlequin, and a Round-keeled Rhyzobius.
Found during a two-hour search of ivy hoping for Horseshoe Ladybird at Brandon Hill. Only others found were two 10-spots, a Harlequin, and a Round-keeled Rhyzobius.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Not much whitefly out yet round me - but I think the SE is probably colder than Bristol at the moment.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Still too cold for whitefly here too. I was just chancing my arm with trying find one overwintering in the ivy.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
BOOM! Just found a Horseshoe Ladybird on an ivy-covered trunk on my local patch in Bristol (feels like a rite of passage). I guess this might be the 2nd record for Bristol, following the ones found at Brandon Hill in 2018 😊. Pics on the ladybirds of UK Facebook group later I hope.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Well done - nothing like persistence!
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
This event on ladybirds might be of interest?
www.eventbrite.co.uk
Celebrating Ladybirds: Developing Our Knowledge Through Citizen Science
Join Prof. Helen Roy MBE to hear about how the UK Ladybird Survey is improving our ecological knowledge of these iconic beetles.
www.eventbrite.co.uk
