Monday 21 July 2014

Orange Ladybird

Nearly home from walkies one afternoon when I saw what at first I thought was a small moth flying towards us. Quite a surprise when it landed on Penny's back.

Poor record shot only as Penny was trying to say hello to a neighbour and wouldn't stand still:

2014-07-19 13.12.10

It turned out to be an Orange Ladybird (Halyzia sedecimguttata) which can have between 14 and 16 white spots. They can be bright yellow or orange and feed mainly on mildew though will sometimes eat aphids. They are more a woodland species frequently found around Sycamore trees but are spreading to Ash. There are plenty of Ash trees round here. I don't remember ever seeing this particular variety before now.

4 comments:

  1. I've never seen one. It's a pity you couldn't get it home. I must get some tiny plastic pots and remember to carry them with me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That might have worked Adrian though more than a tad difficult to capture it from a constantly moving dog ;)

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    2. Yes, mine move fast enough and they only have little legs.

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Thank you for visiting. Hope you enjoyed the pictures. Any comment, or correction to any information or identification I get wrong, is most welcome. John

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