Welcome Back!

Posted by MadScientist (Düsseldorf, Germany) on 17 March 2008 in Animal & Insect.

Welcome back, little ladybug! Hope you're hungry and you will eat a lot of aphids! A first aphid colony is already destroying my pansies, so drink your lavender-saturated water and hurry up! :-)

Comments (16)

Michael Skorulski from Cigel, Slovakia

A wonderful shot with the jolly MS brand of commentary. Very enjoyable.

17 Mar 2008 12:26am

@Michael Skorulski: This ladybug was not the only one: at least three of them were having a drink!

Japanalia from Yokohama, Japan

I like your comment here! Never thought of the drinks THEY drink!

17 Mar 2008 1:57am

@Japanalia: Sometimes I think, even insects try to get drunk. I once observed a bumblebee in our lavender that appeared to be almost dead: it was moving very slowly and didn't respond to slight touches, so I left it untouched and thought by myself that this would be an acceptable death for a bumblebee - inmidst the flowers. Hours later, it had changed its position and was sucking at another lavender flower. So it was the next and the following day. Only at the third day it disappeared, so I guess it had a three day pub crawl! Heavens! :-D

Steven from Chicagoland, United States

Beautiful macro shot! It's interesting to see how the ladybug's "spots" are bleeding into each other. A very shiny ladybug, too.

17 Mar 2008 10:10am

@Steven: And certainly he's a little bit dizzy! Hours after taking this photo he was still there!

dpm from Maalé, Maldives

that is cool, its doing exactly as you suggested
very cool

17 Mar 2008 12:42pm

@dpm: Have a look at my answer to Japanalia's comment: I think even insects like to get drunk!

Ina from Krugersdorp, South Africa

Very nice shot, beautiful ladybug!

17 Mar 2008 12:46pm

@Ina: Thanks, Ina! Best photo I could get of a rainy sunday :-)

Tracey from Baltimore, United States

I love ladybugs....except in the fall when hundreds swarm the house. But, overall wonderful creatures! Nice capture of this one!

17 Mar 2008 2:04pm

@Tracey: Thanks, Tracey! Yes, sometimes they get quite invasive, especially in the warmer months. Either way, I want them to eat these aphid colonies...
I'm still looking for a nice window photo for you, but I'm afraid to say that I'm sort of a window dodger! I'll keep searching!

Michael from Wuppertal, Germany

Sehr schönes Bild!
Wenn Du noch ein paar von diesen niedlichen Freunden haben möchtest: Bei uns entwickeln die sich zur Plage. Irgendwo unter dem Fensterbrett oder hinter den Schieferschindeln am Haus scheint ein Nest zu sein. Gibts ein probates (natürliches) Mittelchen dagegen? Wir werfen so täglich 5-10 von denen raus...

17 Mar 2008 3:33pm

@Michael: Danke :) Man kann Insekten mit diversen Mittelchen 'vergällen'. In der Praxis sieht das dann so aus, daß man anfängt, nach Knoblauch oder Gülle stinkendes Zeug zu verspritzen, was freilich auch nur ein paar Tage lang wirkt - falls überhaupt. Natürliche Feine kenne ich auch keine, Käfer sind nicht unbedingt lecker für andere. Vielleicht liegt's ja an den Ursachen: gibt's viele Ameisen im Garten? Die züchten ja bekanntlich Blattläuse, auf die die Käferchen stehen...

drphoto from Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Ha ha! Cute image. I like the commentary and I love the idea of insects getting drunk!

Dan

17 Mar 2008 4:08pm

@drphoto: Especially our lavenders are attracting them magically! Perhaps I should try to distill some of the flowers and have a drink, too :-)

MaryB from Staffordshire, United Kingdom

A brilliant close up shot of this little lady bug, Lavender has a soporific affect on us humans helping us to sleep, so she was probably having a little nap :)

Last autumn, the wasps were feeding on our elder berries and they definatly got drunk, they were falling off whilst still holding onto the berries. After they had wandered around on the floor for a while, they flew back up for more lol :D

17 Mar 2008 4:29pm

@MaryB: Similar happened to a bumblebee trying to continue her flight out of our lavender. After several false starts and crashes she finally stumbled away (if a 'stumble flight' is the correct expression). Perhaps the essential oils of the plant have a special effect on them :-)

Craig from Vacaville, California, United States

Good use of the word "stumbled" above. Great shot too!!!

17 Mar 2008 5:42pm

@Craig: Thanks, Craig! Was Bernkastel the town you visitied years ago?

akarui from Kagoshima, Japan

Insects needs to drink, the flowers nectar might be sufficient but in summer I have seen them drinking water. Nice shot, the ladybug is too much in the center for my taste and you could try different crops. Be carefull of your beer...

17 Mar 2008 8:39pm

@akarui: I'll do :-)
I had various shots of this bug. I've chosen this one to have the most part of the flower within. The rest is pure laziness...