Harlequin Ladybirds

There are 46 different ladybird species in the UK, including 3 'new' species which have become established in the last few years. One of these new species is the harlequin ladybird which was first recorded in 2004 near London and is rapidly spreading across the country.

The harlequin ladybird originates from Asia, but was deliberately released in some European countries, but not the UK, as a biological control agent in some protected horticultural crops. It quickly escaped and established in the wild in mainland Europe, building up to be the most common ladybird species in some places. It probably arrived in the UK on plants imported from Europe, but could have arrived naturally by crossing the Channel on favourable winds.

Like our common 7-spot ladybird, the harlequin is a general predator feeding on a variety of small insects, particularly aphids. One of the scare-stories about the harlequin is that it will eat our native species - yes it will, but several of our native species will also attack other ladybirds, and some, given the chance, will eat their siblings!

For gardeners the impact of the harlequin ladybird will probably be minimal because, even if it displaces some native species, it will eat the same sort of prey so we will still get help controlling aphids and other garden pests. From a naturalist's viewpoint its impact will probably be greater with perhaps slightly less bio-diversity.

Read the whole article complete with photographs - click here...