Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Well done - did you find it 'wintering' in a reed stem?
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The Ladybird thread (3 Viewers)
- Thread starter Andy Bright
- Start date
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
I found it in a rush (Juncus) tussock by shaking the tussock into a sweep net. I found several Spotted Marsh Ladybirds in nearby reeds last year, but no Red Marsh Ladybirds. This one was in different (though adjacent) habitat.
Did you post a photo of this on FB along with some other species today as I saw somebody post it on the Ladybird site? Smart ladybird.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Yes, on the UK Ladybirds FB group 👍
Visited a cemetery in west London where Mottled Shieldbug had been reported ( a recent colonist I haven't connected with yet). No joy but good to see c300 overwintering Orange Ladybirds with singles of 7-spot & Harlequin-mostly on the graves but a few on undersides of a tree's low branches.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Nice. I found my first Orange Ladybirds of the year a few days ago. 7 of them in ivy on a sycamore trunk. My yearlist's on 14 now, all "on patch", with 2 additional spp seen by another observer (aka fellow nerd 😆).
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Yearlist up to 17 now, with Water Ladybird, Spotted Marsh Ladybird, and 24-spot Ladybird found in Bristol this morning.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
You're doing incredibly well. All I seem to find are Rhyzobius chrysomeloides. At least they come in an interesting mix of patterns to create some ID challenges.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
2-spot finally in at #18 today
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
10-spot in at #19 for year. Found while searching Ivy at the site in Bristol where I've just discovered that Horseshoe Ladybird was found in 2018. No joy with the biggie though.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Still mainly orange and 7-spot here. I've found some larches but they're on a BT Openreach site and I'm not sure I dare 'sample' the trees.
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Very few larches on patch for me, but I did find a couple with reaches branches the other day. Waiting for them to get needles before I give them a go. Still need Larch Ladybird.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
So do I ... along with a whole stack of others.
What is your tecnique for finding marsh ladybirds? Sweeping reeds requires a wet-suit, or at least waders, round here!
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
At this time of year try looking in the tops of broken reed stems. That's where we found Spotted Marsh and Water Ladybirds recently. Luckily we found some straight away, as this method is quite destructive and then not easy to put the ladybirds back somewhere similar.
In the warm months I was finding both these species in reeds quite easily just by visual search. Scanning with bins can be good.
On my patch I haven't found any Red Marsh Ladybirds in the reeds, even in the summer. They've been found wintering in tussocks of rush and also tussocks of grass near the water's edge. This is tough habitat to check, but I originally found them by bending rush tussocks into the net and shaking the tussock. You can also do this by sawing through a tussock near the base and shaking the contents over a sieve, but that damages the tussock even if you replace it. At least the bugs can then be put in a different tussock.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
Thanks - you're a veritable oracle!
Larry Sweetland
Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
At lunchtime today I couldn't resist prising apart the tops of a couple of broken reed stems on the patch 😁. First two were empty, third had a spider, and 4th time lucky... 2 Spotted Marsh Ladybirds together. It was a bit fiddly but I managed to rehouse them together in another broken stem.
There must be heaps of them to have that kind of hit rate. If anyone's struggling to find this species I thoroughly recommend Duchess Pond in Stoke Park in Bristol 🙂
There must be heaps of them to have that kind of hit rate. If anyone's struggling to find this species I thoroughly recommend Duchess Pond in Stoke Park in Bristol 🙂
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
I tried some Typha but all I found was a small larva, possibly of a moth. I'll try again tomorrow.
Surreybirder
Ken Noble
I spent a fair while yesterday looking at broken reeds in two different spots. I must have taken apart about 30 stalks but didn't find any ladybirds (although I did find a very colourful spider). The reedbeds are only about four years old so I might try a longer-estblished one next although it will involve a bit of a drive.
Any photos of the spider?
