The stories of bees and bugs

Scan to see more THE SEVEN-SPOT LADYBIRD Our relationship with this almost ubiquitous beetle is long and significant; the name ‘ladybird’ supposedly originates from cultivators of old who, dismayed by damage caused by aphids, prayed to the Virgin Mary. The arrival of the beetles that set to work on the aphids seemed miraculous, leading to the name Beetle of Our Lady, compressed into ‘lady beetle’ and later ‘ladybird’. Today it's a portent of good fortune throughout its extensive global range. Over summer, local aphid populations are dispatched swiftly by the hungry, highly efficient larvae as they emerge from their eggs, as tiny, knobbly, black larva. It's ideally timed; as summer peaks, so do aphid numbers and several generations of ladybirds feast over the warmest months. Once the larva is ready to metamorphose,…

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The Simple Things (Digital) - 1 Issue, May 2024

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