Ladybirds - Coccinellidae

[ozwildlife]

Thanks Paul, but the C. montrouzieri picture isn't mine, so I can't take any credit for that. (It's from another site that specialises in Australian insects).

Originally Posted by paul m

Perhaps not surprising but we've had contact before - you gave me permission to use your picture of the larva of C. montrouzieri on my site!

Thanks again. Pleased to see that your brilliant photographs continue to appear!

....

[paul m]

Perhaps you'll be lucky and get the small orange ladybird as well - Vibidia duodecimguttata - another one not found in UK and, I gather, still fairly rare elsewhere in Europe.

Originally Posted by Pudding4brains

I uploaded an image yesterday where one is sitting next to the somewhat similar 16-spotted Halyzia. For this year I hope to find both of these species together with a 14-spotted Calvia and maybe even the similar variety of the 10-spot and get them all in one shot - but maybe I'm aiming too high

Cheers!
Arp

[Pudding4brains]

Originally Posted by paul m

Perhaps you'll be lucky and get the small orange ladybird as well - Vibidia duodecimguttata

Well ... I've never found that one yet, but as a matter of fact - inspired by this thread and a discussion on an orangy ladybird on entomologie.de (which I believe to be Ada.dec.) I started to compile a little list of "Bambi-like ladybirds":

• 10 spots Adalia decempunctata (orange/brown var.) img, img, img
• 10 spots Calvia decemguttata img, img, img.
• 12 spots Vibidia duodecimguttata img, img.
• 14 spots Calvia quatordecimguttata img, img.
• 15 spots Calvia quinquedecimguttata img.
• 16 spots Halyzia sedecimguttata img, img.
• 18 spots Myrha octodecimguttata img, img, img.
• 20 spots Sospita vigintiguttata (orange var.) img, img, img.
• striped Myzia oblongoguttata img, img.

Now all I need to do is find them on one tree and shooo them all onto one leaf for a nice picture
Might not happen just this year, but can always keep trying ... :P
Arp

[paul m]

The 'harlequin' ladybird ontinues to spread southwards:
Page

[goosey]

That's phenomenal - such tiny creatures being able to cover such a vast distance and colonise in four years!

[Pudding4brains]

A forum member of insektenfotos.de from Tirol reported her first Har.axy. this year too. I seem to remember her meadow/garden is at 1100m, but cant's seem to find it now to double-check.

On the forum at naturamediterraneo.com there are regular accounts of Har.axy. in (northern?) Italy at least since spring 2007. Not sure if they came in via the south of France, over the Alps (aided by trucks from NW-Europe?), or by some other route though.

From the French maps I would gather that busy human transport routes would at least have some function in helping the critters get a move on

Cheers, Arp

[paul m]

Yes many of them are transporte - not just by lorries but also on trains. Some of the spread across UK has been by that mode - definitely so in the case of the single northern Irish record:
http://www.harlequin-survey.org/imag...rs_10Oct08.jpg