[NatureNS] lady bugs

Date: Mon, 22 Oct 2007 16:12:36 -0300
From: David & Alison Webster <dwebster@glinx.com>
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c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca wrote:

> Hi Randy,
>
> Harmonia axyridis is indeed one of the introduced species of lady 
> beetles (6 of the 47 species found in the Maritimes). Most of the 
> research that I am aware related to the impact of introduced species 
> on native ones has implicated  another species,  Coccinella 
> septempunctata (the seven-spotted lady beetle), but this may be 
> because C. septempunctata has been around longer and has been the 
> subject of more research in the past. Given the phenomenal abundance 
> of H. axyridis in some areas I would be surprised if they were not 
> having some impact on native lady beetles (and other insects as well).
>
Hi Chris & All,            Oct 22, 2007
    I checked Larochelle (1979; Coccinellids of Quebec) for his comments 
about Coccinella septempunctata. One item stands out.

    In the early 1900s a tincture for toothache & rhumatism, made from 
this beetle, was popular in Europe. If my rusty French serves, this is 
prepared by mashing 60-80 seven-spotted beetles in an ounce of alcohol 
(presumably then strained) and either rubbed on or taken internally as 
40-60 drops.  The usage would suggest that they were also abundant in 
Europe where I think they are native.
YT, DW, Kentville

>
> Nonetheless, unfortunate as this may be, the cat is well and truly out 
> of the bag by now since H. axyridis as now colonized the entire 
> eastern United States as well as most areas in southeastern Canada and 
> there are now robust populations in Washington, Oregon, California, 
> and British Columbia. Even assiduously destroying every one that came 
> within reach the effect would be far less even than the proverbial 
> pinprick on an elephant (there must surely be hundreds of millions of 
> H. axyridis in the Maritimes, if not more). 
> Barring unforeseen circumstances we are now stuck with this species as 
> a prominent part of our fauna.
>
>
> N.B. The cat may still be bagged on both Prince Edward Island and Cape 
> Breton Island. Although I have found H. axyridis in all three counties 
> on PEI, they have nonetheless remained rare there and there may be 
> some chance that they will not permanently establish. David 
> McCorquodale's work on Cape Breton Island showed that although the 
> species arrived there in 1985, it seems to 
> have subsequently disappeared. Perhaps winter conditions have proved 
> too inclement for its survival there? On the other hand, if climate 
> change proceeds apace, these circumstances may not hold true for very 
> long ...
>
>
> Cheers!
>
>
> Chris
>
>
> On 22-Oct-07, at 10:41 AM, Randy Lauff wrote:
>
>
>> Multicoloured Asian Ladybird Beetles (Harmonia axyridis)
>>
>>  
>>
>> "They don't seem to do any obvious harm in the house."
>>
>> "Some of them get inside and when I'm there I dutifully collect them 
>> and release them in the greenhouse where I hope they can put a dent 
>> in the whitefly population..."
>>
>>  
>>
>> Harm in the house...no...dent in the whitefly population, perhaps. 
>> Cause a catastophic decline in our native species' numbers...isn't 
>> this one of the foreign culprits that could be responsible?
>>
>>  
>>
>> When they're in such large, accessible numbers, I'd take the 
>> opportunity to destroy them. When I look at the choice between my 
>> garden and nature as a whole, nature wins. And yes, I remove 
>> earthworms from my garden, too. And I have a wonderful garden. There 
>> is no need for for foreign species assistance in gardening, not at 
>> the risk of the loss of natives.
>>
>>
>> Randy
>> _________________________________
>> RF Lauff
>> Way in the boonies of
>> Antigonish County, NS.
>>
>
> _._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.
>
> Christopher Majka - Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History
>
> 1747 Summer Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada   B3H 3A6
>
> (902) 424-6435   Email < c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca 
> <mailto:c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca> >
>
> _._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.
>
>


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