Very short blog today as I’ve been really busy with college work, but did manage to get out in the garden to take a couple of photos of ladybirds.
- There are 46 different Ladybird species in the UK. 27 of those actually look like what most people think a ladybird looks like.
- Ladybirds are small to medium sized beetles (Coccinellidae).
- They are usually round or oval, they are brightly coloured and patterned.
- The most common is the 7 spot ladybird.
- Ladybirds always have the same number of spots, they don’t grow more spots.
- They are brightly coloured as a warning to predators.
- The horrible yellow liquid you find on your hands sometimes after holding a ladybird is called reflex blood, it smells and contains toxins that may put off a predator.
Appleton Wildlife Diary by Alex White 
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Love the Coccinellidae. I didn’t realize there were so many of them that didn’t look “typical” until I started identifying all the beetles I could find. And then there are the ones that look like them but aren’t in the family. Beetles are just cool.
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