Notes for recorders

Many thanks for helping to study and map the distribution of ladybirds in London and Essex. This sheet gives some hints on how to identify and report your finds. We appreciate that there is a wide range of expertise and experience amongst recorders so several alternatives are offered. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you are unsure on any point.

Most of the ladybirds you find will belong to a few species (such as the 2- and 7-spots) and probably 99% of ladybirds will belong to seven or eight species. Do not despair! Records of the common species are as useful as those of rarities.

With five exceptions, British ladybirds are predators, mainly eating aphids. Thus they are found wherever aphids are found: especially on young leaf and flower growth. They are not usually difficult to see but it is always worth shaking a few flowers or branches to see what drops out. Some species are found mainly on trees: examination of cracks in bark is often useful.

In many cases ladybirds can be identified without magnification but at many a small lens or magnifying jar is helpful. Ladybirds readily fly away so the use of a transparent pot or box is useful.

Identification

In most cases this simply involves looking at the hindbody colour and counting the spots!

1 The best method is to use a copy of the Naturalists’ Handbook no.10 (Richmond Publishing

Company) Ladybirds by Majerus & Kearns. This contains two keys for all British ladybirds as well

as colour illustrations, including some variant types. (A summary wall chart is also available.)

Ladybirds of Surrey (Surrey Wildlife Trust, School Lane, Pirbright, Woking Surrey GU24 0JN)

has very good photographs.

2 We have produced a very simplified key which should allow easy identification of most specimens.

3 We have a report form with ladybird silhouettes: you may colour these in to imitate your specimen.

4 If you remain doubtful or find a very unusually patterned ladybird, please send a specimen to me.

Live specimens should be posted early in the week, packed with some food material (aphids on a leaf) in a tough but

not completely air-tight container. Please check that I shall be available to receive them! Dead specimens

also need protection from crushing: photographic film containers are adequate.

There are three areas of possible confusion:

  1. Immature, newly emerged ladybirds will be very pale, often without markings, their full pattern takes many hours to emerge. The background colour changes with age.
  2. Variants: most ladybirds, but especially the 2- and 10-spot, have aberrant forms, sometimes with colour reversal (i.e. light spots on a black background), often with strange patterns. Leg colour is important.
  3. Exotics: some foreign species are used for greenhouse control of aphids, these do escape but (at present) probably don’t survive the winter. These exotics will not appear in any of the keys.

Reports

There are two report sheets. One to allow simple listing of records, the other to allow drawings of the specimens but I shall be happy to take reports in any other form by post or e-mail. Some information, e.g. precise location, is essential for all reports. Other information may be very useful. I would like to receive records by early December each year, please.

1 Species: English or Latin/scientific names are acceptable;

2 Location: A six (or eight) figured O.S. grid reference is preferred

3 Date: if the same species is often seen at the same place, an indication of the period of activity will be helpful.

4 Habitat and feeding:

5 Numbers: maximum over a week, fortnight or month if a site is regularly monitored.