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Ladybug Day
April 21, 2012
Photos: John Bryant and Diana Goforth
Scientists Need Your Help
The scientists at Cornell University need the help of children all over the country to find, photograph, and release ladybugs as part of the Lost Ladybug Project. These scientists are concerned about the decline of native ladybugs and need help find out what kind of ladybugs can be found in our area. When we upload the photos of the ladybugs, the scientists at Cornell will identify them. The scientists can’t be everywhere to do the searching so they need your help, because kids are very careful searchers. After all, it was a ten and eleven year old sister and brother who found the 9-spotted ladybug the scientist hadn’t seen in years.
Citizen Scientists
Who can be a citizen scientist? YOU, when you come to the San Diego Botanic Garden’s Ladybug Day and help search for ladybugs! Last year we found and photographed 176 ladybugs.
Fun Fact about Ladybugs
Lieutenant Ladybug leads the troops against the Aphid Army
Aphids are tiny insects that damage plants. Ladybug beetles are a great natural defense against aphids because one ladybug can eat 100-150 aphids in a day.
Are Ladybugs always red with black spots? No way. Some are black with red spots. Some have no spots and some are yellow. We even found blue ones at the San Diego Botanic Garden.
Do ladybugs always look like ladybugs?
Other ladybugs would always recognize them, but when they are eggs or larva stage they look very different from the adult stage we all know. The eggs look like tiny yellow bowling pins and the larva stage looks like a tiny black alligator. Don’t use pesticides to control aphids. You could be killing a ladybug, your garden’s best friend.
Do all Ladybugs Look Alike?
There are thousands of different kinds of ladybugs in the world and over 150 different kinds just in the United States. Check out the pictures of three different kinds of ladybugs found on just one vegetable plant in the Hamilton Children’s Garden.
Seven different kinds of lady bugs that were found
during the Lady Bug Day in 2011
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