OT: Lost Ladybugs and Citizen Science

museumguy

museumguy

Active member
Not sure if any of you have heard of the Lost Ladybug Project or not, http://www.lostladybug.org , but I suspect that it would be pretty popular amongst many of the people on this board, especially those with children. Basically it is a citizen science program that teaches people to look for and tell the difference between common and rare ladybug species.

It was a program that I helped lay the groundwork for when I was in college and I'm pretty excited to say that it is taking off across the country and is even in multiple countries now. Monday I found one of the very rare ladybugs (Two-Spot Ladybug) right in the Discovery Garden of the museum, only the second one found in NY state in the last 3 years. I'd love to get more people looking for them in the Rochester (or central NY) area, would be great if we could find some more. The beetle I found was FedEx'ed back to Cornell to join their captive colony where they hope to one day have enough to start repopulating areas of them in the wild.
 
I found a freaking bazillion (dead) ladybugs behind the siding on one corner of my house, does that count? :D

All kidding aside, it's a neat project, definitely something fun for the kids, who love ladybugs.
 
I've always thought the the house infester beetle isn't a true Lady Bug. I'll look over the link; with a 5 and 2yo we love afternoons doing things that involve nature discovery.
 
I helped my brother gut a room and we filled a garbage bag with ladybug carcasses that had made a home in the wall. I wonder what kind they were...

Thanks for the link, I'm sure my kids would like to participate.
 
The ladybugs that tend to accumulate in people's houses are 9 times out of 10 going to be Harmonia axyridis, the Multi-Colored Asian Ladybug. They are one of the ladybugs the study is looking to keep track of, and it is possibly the cause of the other species decline. They are by far the most common species now, and about 30 or 40 years ago they basically didn't exist in North America. In its native Asian habitats it overwinters on cliff faces but they have adapted pretty well to go into people's houses now.
 
two spots used to be pretty common when I was a kid.

Those large Asian ones occur in plague-like populations nowadays. Do the Asian ones prey directly on our native species?
 
Gary Majchrzak said:
two spots used to be pretty common when I was a kid.
Click to expand...

Yup, as little as 25 years ago some of the ones that are basically non-existant now were the dominant species. You could walk outside and in a matter of 2 or 3 minute find a 9 spot or 2 spot. Now we havn't seen a 9 spot in NY in over 25 years. And 2 spots are almost as rare.

Gary Majchrzak said:
Those large Asian ones occur in plague-like populations nowadays. Do the Asian ones prey directly on our native species?
Click to expand...

There is some evidence that they will eat ladybug eggs and early instar (freshly hatched) larvae, but it appears they do it pretty randomly and will even cannibalize their own species. In all likelyhood the Harmonia (Asian) beetles are just better at reproducing and getting to the food than the 9 and 2 spots are, and there is also some evidence that the 7 spot ladybug and the 9 spot can hybridize, and its possible that the hybrids resemble 7 spots. That has yet to be confirmed though.

Around 1980 a class from a New York school petitioned their senator and asked that he sponsor a bill to make the Nine Spot Ladybug (Coccinella novemnotata) be our official New York State insect due to its abundance and the important role it played in protecting New York’s crops from plant pests.
It took a few years, but the Nine Spot Ladybug became our official state insect in 1989. There was a small amount of fanfare associated with the announcement and people wanted to get an up close look at our new state insect which, according to reports, was so common. The only problem was that in the 8 or 9 years that it took to become our official insect, these beetles that were once the most common ladybug found in New York State had vanished. Nobody could find a single one anywhere in New York. The last reported collection of this beetle in the entire northeast was in 1992. In 2006 as part of this project a 10 and 11 year old brother/sister pair in Virginia found a single 9 spot, the first since 1992.
 
i'll pass it along to Liam's kindergarten teacher. They are planning a couple of field trips during the fall.
 
Wow,after reading this thread I started thinking about it and I cant recall when the last time I saw a pink ladybug.I dont know the right term for it but pink with blackdots ,use to see those all the time.
 
Gravesj1s said:
Wow,after reading this thread I started thinking about it and I cant recall when the last time I saw a pink ladybug.I dont know the right term for it but pink with blackdots ,use to see those all the time.
Click to expand...



Sounds like you are talking about Coleomegilla maculata, or C-mac for short. They are still pretty common if you know where to look. They have the ability to supplement their diet by feeding on pollen from flowers, and are very common in large monocultured fields like corn. In college I did research on genetically modified corn and how it effected non-target insects like these beetles amongst others.
Coleomegilla-maculata1.jpg
 
Thanks for the clarifying. I think that is the type I was refering to its been so long since I actually seen one.Nice pic.

The overall thread is pretty astonishing. I had no idea those were in such sparse numbers here.
My daughter has written for her school newspaper the past few years,not sure if shes doing it this year yet with school just starting up but I passed it along to her anyway.
 
The picture up above has how many spots? Looks like alot more than 9. I think if you want us to save the bugs we need better pictures. Can you provide us with mug shots of the good and the bad bugs clearly labeled? Maybe its just my failing eyesite but the spot counting is confusing.
 
tent boy said:
The picture up above has how many spots? Looks like alot more than 9. I think if you want us to save the bugs we need better pictures. Can you provide us with mug shots of the good and the bad bugs clearly labeled? Maybe its just my failing eyesite but the spot counting is confusing.
Click to expand...

The ladybug pictured is sometimes called the 10 spot ladybug. I put a picture up because he was talking about the pink ladybugs and its really the only pink one you'll find native to this area. It is still pretty common if you know where to look.

http://www.lostladybug.org/files/FieldGuide.pdf
Here is a guide from the website that shows the common ladybugs of NY as well as the rare ones the program is looking for.
 
I found another of the rare two-spotted ones today. I talked to my professor who really plans on intensifying the search between Rochester and Buffalo in the coming days, so anyone who lives out that way you could make a real significant find in your own backyard...
 
Last night something happened that makes this thread no longer off topic in this forum. I found a ladybug in my fish tank. :lol:

It had expired, but here's a photo once I'd fished it out:

360g010.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Brian60077
Be patient, wait, and do not rush to add things ???
Replies
11
Views
955
Brian60077
Brian60077
Paul B
The Benefit of Parasites
Replies
4
Views
941
kelly_12
K
laguna-madre
40g macroalgae & soft coral lagoon
2
Replies
25
Views
3K
griss
griss
BarIzoN
To the next level - Corals, Water chemistry, and beyond
Replies
9
Views
653
JohnL
JohnL
Plastik0cean
Indonesian Biotope Build - JBJ 45G
Replies
1
Views
652
JohnL
JohnL
Back
Top