the habits of ladybirds
At first there was a 'two's company scenario': two mating ladybirds hanging perilously vertically on the narrow edge of a picnic table. The sight of a small boy trying to cup them in his hands drew my attention to them.
I suggested I would take their photo and perhaps we should leave them alone. This apparently satisfied him, and also his even smaller brother who had come to see what was going on.
Some time afterwards, we passed by this same picnic table during our visit to the buddleias in the walled garden. I saw a third ladybird alight on the table and scurry along the top edge. I must have then had a moment's inattention because I suddenly realised it had joined the first two, making this threesome.
Not easy to tell, from this jumble of red with black spots, but these look rather like 5-spot ladybirds aka coccinella qinquepunctata, although Google tells me they are rare.
I showed my shot to my good friend, Gilly, who tells me she discovered that "ladybirds' mating lasts 2 hours during which time they are very vulnerable to passing hungry birds (plus innocent small boys and mad ladies with cameras)** and if you see some you should cover them up to prevent aerial attacks."
It's taken ages to render this photo suitable to post - thus for:
Sliders Sunday -- Post Processed To The MAX!
**in brackets = Gilly's own words, some of which I have edited....
the habits of ladybirds
At first there was a 'two's company scenario': two mating ladybirds hanging perilously vertically on the narrow edge of a picnic table. The sight of a small boy trying to cup them in his hands drew my attention to them.
I suggested I would take their photo and perhaps we should leave them alone. This apparently satisfied him, and also his even smaller brother who had come to see what was going on.
Some time afterwards, we passed by this same picnic table during our visit to the buddleias in the walled garden. I saw a third ladybird alight on the table and scurry along the top edge. I must have then had a moment's inattention because I suddenly realised it had joined the first two, making this threesome.
Not easy to tell, from this jumble of red with black spots, but these look rather like 5-spot ladybirds aka coccinella qinquepunctata, although Google tells me they are rare.
I showed my shot to my good friend, Gilly, who tells me she discovered that "ladybirds' mating lasts 2 hours during which time they are very vulnerable to passing hungry birds (plus innocent small boys and mad ladies with cameras)** and if you see some you should cover them up to prevent aerial attacks."
It's taken ages to render this photo suitable to post - thus for:
Sliders Sunday -- Post Processed To The MAX!
**in brackets = Gilly's own words, some of which I have edited....