The Lost Ladybug Project
The Lost Ladybug Project
Cornell Cooperative Extension Needs Your Help with Local Ladybug Population
Cornell Cooperative Staff release nine spotted ladybugs, larvae and eggs outside their office site in Ellicottville. Photo / Cornell Cooperative Extension
ELLICOTTVILLE - Cornell Cooperative Extension Cattaraugus County’s Master Gardener Program received rare nine spotted lady bugs, larvae and eggs as part of Cornell’s Lost Ladybug Project to help reestablish local native populations across New York State.
As a kid, we learned when a ladybug lands on you, it represents good luck and fortune. If you count the spots, you'll have as many years of good luck as the bug does spots. Today, if a ladybug lands on you it is likely their non-native lookalike, the Asian Lady Beetle. There has been a decline in native ladybugs, which are a beneficial insect predator. If you are a gardener, these are welcomed friends of your garden!
Most ladybugs in North America are beneficial as both adults and larvae, feeding primarily on aphids. If aphids are limited, ladybug adults and larvae may feed on the eggs of moths and beetles, mites, thrips, and other small insects, as well as pollen and nectar. Because of their ability to survive on other prey when aphids are in short supply, ladybugs are a valuable natural enemy you want around.
The Lost Ladybug Project is a citizen science that relies on the public to scout for native ladybugs, such as the nine spotted we received in Ellicottville. Volunteers across the country look for ladybugs in their yards, gardens, or other locations. When volunteers spot ladybugs, they upload a photograph and identify the location where the photo was taken for Cornell researchers. Cornell uses this information to learn more about where our native ladybugs are found, how many there might be, and what effect the changing distribution of ladybugs may have on local ecosystems (e.g., increase in garden pests).
Are you interested in joining the cause? Visit their webpage. Information is being updated; please continue to check for updates: www.lostladybug.org.
The Master Gardener Program is one of many programs offered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cattaraugus County (CCE- Cattaraugus). CCE- Cattaraugus is a subordinate governmental agency with an educational mission that operates under a form of organization and administration approved by Cornell University as agent for the State of New York. It is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The association is part of the national cooperative extension system, an educational partnership between County, State, and Federal governments.
As New York’s land grant university Cornell administers the system in this state. Each Cornell Cooperative Extension association is an independent employer that is governed by an elected Board of Directors with general oversight from Cornell. All associations work to meet the needs of the counties in which they are located as well as state and national goals. For more information, call 716-699-2377 or visit our website at cattaraugus.cce.cornell.edu. Cornell University Cooperative Extension provides equal program and employment opportunities.