These thousands of ladybugs are everwhere. Does anyone know why or where they are coming from? Year before last was the same thing. But before that I never saw any to speak of. Don

-- Don (dairyagri@yahoo.com), October 26, 2000

Answers

In our local newspaper yesterday there was an article written by an Ohio State University Extension Ag Agent. He said that in the late 70's the U.S. Department of Agriculture released eastern Asian ladybugs as a biological control agent. They eat aphids. For several years these lady beetles could not be found and were assumed extinct but then found in 1988. They believe that the increases of recently established populations are not a result of earler USDA beetle releases, but are from a new source of Asian Lady Beetles introduced accidentally on an Asian freighter in New Orleans. I have lived in rural areas for most of my life and had never seen this problem until we were selling our house in Maryland in 1997. We couldn't paint because they were so thick on the sides of our house and of course they were all over when people would come to look at the house that fall and then again in the spring when the ladybugs were trying to get back outside. When we moved into this house in the winter of 1998, in NW Ohio, we could tell there had been a problem with them here (dead ones in window tracks) but last fall (99) we didn't have a problem - this fall they are everywhere and people in town are having them too.

Terry

-- Terry (aunt_tm@hotmail.com), October 26, 2000.

I tried to post this earlier, don't know if I put it on a wrong thread or what. The Department of Natural Resources released a report a few year ago that said the lady bugs were an experiment that got out of hand. They started on the west coast and worked their way here.

-- Cindy (atilrthehony_1@yahoo.com), October 26, 2000.

We built our home in central Wisc. in 1997, no ladybugs that year or the prior years when we lived out of a trailer here (and, didn't really notice that it mattered or not). The past 2 years + this one, the ladybugs have increased each year. There have been numerous articles and Letters to the Editor of local newspapers (this past week's most recent letter to the Editor of the "Waushara Argus" is most humorous). What I've noticed is that the other bugs we've had in the house just prior to the onset of the ladybug invasion, have all disappeared when the ladybugs arrived. We've always told our 3 year old son that the ladybugs are "good bugs" and we stick by that story.....

-- Rose Marie Wild (wintersongfarm@yahoo.co), October 26, 2000.

The box elder bug seems to be able to coexist with it. Plenty of each in my house.

-- Mike O (olsonmr@yahoo.com), October 27, 2000.

hey here in nw ohio they are everywhere I have tried sweeping them up by the hundreds but seems five minutes later there are at least that many maybe more, i was told that they were being used in the manure from a big chicken farm, they spread some of the manure on fields in our area last year and ever since we have really been plagued with them, they bite too! I guess we are talking about the same tannish reddish brown lady bugs? Would love to rid us of them but have to be extremely careful as we have a cockatiel and can't spray near her.thanks

-- julie (nelson3@bright.net), October 27, 2000.

Caulk,caulk,caulk,caulk!!!! Seal up all your little cracks and they can't get in plus you'll have better energy efficiency.

These are good bugs,just have this bothersome habit. Liked the suggestion to put them in the frig then put them in your garden next spring.We had more problem with wasps getting in and I'm allergic, so we caulked,caulked,caulked,and caulked. I guess you got it,by now.

Someone want to jump in and explain abt. caulking.I'm tired and am going to bed.Night.

-- sharon wt (wildflower@ekyol.com), October 28, 2000.

I get them every fall. When the weather's nice I'll spend my day scrapping them up on a piece of paper and letting them outside. For what it is worth, the imported Asian beetle is supposed to be larger than the usual ladybug. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), October 28, 2000.

After reading this thread, I had an idea, not original though, just reapplied. Build a box with an outlet on two sides to accomodate a vaccuum hose, with the box divided with a screen to capture the little guys (gals), and use this to harvest and put in the fridge, like an earlier posting informed us of. This is how a beekeeper friend harvested swarms, works without harming little guys (gals). Wayne Roach

-- Wayne & Lyn Roach (R-WAY@msn.com), October 29, 2000.

These are not Lady Bugs!

If I remember correctly, these bugs, which look like lady bugs but have a brownish-orange shell rather than bright red, are some kind of Chinese bug that came to the US on some palletts from China.

As they are not native they have not natural predators and therefore are spreading unchecked.

Please do not call them lady bugs, which are wonderful beneficial predators for us to have on our homesteads.

-- Justin Shelton (justinshelton@netscape.net), October 31, 2000.