I wandered out to the greenhouse to shut off some lights, Behold, my rooster, trying to mate with a guinea! And what's wrong with the 24 hens available to him? Now these aren't the brightest, or friendliest chickens I've ever owned.....but this is downright dumb! Back to the house; flop in front of the computer...there is one of those ladybugs, sitting on the "d" on my keyboard. We've had an invasion since October, and while we've caulked every imaginable crack and crevis, still they come in by the dozens. It scares me to think whats up in the attic! Sweetie has made it his daily chore to suck the little guys up with the vacuum, but these things really drive him nuts! Didn't I tell him guineas were supposed to be good for bug control? The bag of ladybugs he dumped out for them didn't impress them in the least! And still I explain the joys of country living to my honey with a smile......

-- Sue (sulandherb@aol.com), January 30, 2002

Answers

Response to Stupid rooster and too many Ladybugs

Hey Sue...I laugh (sorry). The last couple of years we have been absolutly overrun with ladybugs. I sure am glad they are "good" bugs and I like them (except in my slippers). I heard on the news that certain countys around here in Michigan have been releasing them in order to control some "bad" bugs. Don't know the particulars, but makes sense to me. I cringe when I hear people in the grocery or hardware stores discussing what poisons to use to get rid of "the things". I bite my tongue. Sorry they are in the house tho. Oh well, remember these things run in cycles. Happy days to you,

-- Susan in Northern Michigan (cobwoman@yahoo.com), January 30, 2002.

Response to Stupid rooster and too many Ladybugs

Sue where are you located? We had a big invasion of ladybugs about 3 years ago. They were everywhere! And like you said it didn't matter what you done to get rid of them or keep them out of your house- nothing works. We were invaded with them again the next year but they were not as bad. But still yet we will uncover something (usually something in storage) and there will be a bunch of dead crunchy ones.

Last summer we were invaded by GNATS. It didn't seem like it mattered how clean we kept the house, they were flying everywhere. I hope we don't see them next summer.

Both of these invasions weren't just at my house, they were at everybody's house around here.

-- r.h. in okla. (rhays@sstelco.com), January 30, 2002.

Response to Stupid rooster and too many Ladybugs

RH, I'm in CT. Near the beginning of October, you couldnt open your mouth outside without swallowing one! Then they got cold.....!

-- Sue (sulandherb@aol.com), January 30, 2002.

Response to Stupid rooster and too many Ladybugs

Sorry to hear about the ladybug invasion, Sue. But look on the bright side, I can think of lots woirse things than lady bugs to be invaded by. For instance, spiders, snakes, rats (snakes don't bother me much actually unless I don't know whether it's a poisonous one or not, but I HATE rats)or even (gasp) toddlers

-- Ben (b_dowell10@hotmail.com), January 30, 2002.

Response to Stupid rooster and too many Ladybugs

The ladybugs are becoming a big problem here in southern Ontario. On a warm day, they come out of the woodwork, literally, because they overwinter in the cracks in the window frames. We have hundreds on sunny days. They are the imported Asian ladybugs that many companies are selling for insect/pest control in the garden. Problem is they are competing too successfully with the native ladybugs and are going to wipe them out if something isn't done soon. Native ones have only 6 or 7 spots on their wings (that's how they're identified..."4-spot, 5-spot, 6-spot,ladybug"). Asian ones have a lot more. If you're buying them for the garden make sure they are a native variety - there are only 4 or 5 species that are native. Otherwise don't buy them.

The Asian ones are nasty...they bite. Not too hard but it pinches. Also, don't step on them, they really stink when squashed. Use the vaccuum instead.

Russ

-- (imashortguy@hotmail.com), January 30, 2002.

Response to Stupid rooster and too many Ladybugs

have you ever TASTED those things!?!

my daughter said they "taste like something that's crawled out of the grave and ain't got no intention of going back."

and that is why they are everywhere. as i watch one crawl across my desk.

do you get little bites from them too? it's the worse to have mosquitos in summer, and these all winter....

-- marcee (thathope@mwt.net), January 30, 2002.

My guess is what you are seeing an invasion of is not our homegrown ladybugs, but the Asian Beetle, much more annoying than the innocuous ladybug. They are very similar in appearance, but the Asian Beetle is slightly larger, stinks and can bite.

-- R. (thor610@yahoo.com), January 31, 2002.

I would suppose that the ladybug population would fluctuate with the population of bugs that they eat. Ladybugs LOVE aphids. Which one would you rather be invaded by?

If you let your house be a little chillier, the ladies wouldn't be able to get around so well.

We keep our place around 50-55 in the winter. The ladybugs come in but stay up in the corners for the most part where there is a little more warmth.

Are you located in the south?

-- Lavender Blue Dilly, Maryland (lavenderbluedilly@hotmail.com`), January 31, 2002.