Ladybugs--sort of...

[sunmountain]

I live in NW PA and our house has been taken over by these African Ladybugs that were imported to us to cure some affliction in our state forest nearby. I don't mind them at all, even though they have taken up shelter in every corner of our kitchen and we are constantly brushing them off of everything! My #2ds likes to put them in his Hot Wheels cars and give them rides across the floor . There's one jumping around on my imac right now...
Anyhoo... I assumed they were harmless, but someone told me recently they will eat the wood in our house like termites: ...anybody know anything about these critters?

[Chanley]

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...403214427.html



This prolly wont help alot, but will let you know you are not alone!

[sunmountain]

Thanx Chanley, the link was a great help, actually.

[Inwe Surion]

Don't know if African are same/similar to Asian ladybugs but, in the 3 years we have had invasions the only thing that remotely helped was to paint lemon juice on all the window frames and door frames.

They still get in by other routes but this did help. I didn't have to vaccuum 100's, yes I said 100's, daily.
gl

[Ms. Mom]

[COLOR-indigo]We've had the most odd ladybug problum this year. I've been in Michigan all my life and NEVER remember ANYTHING like this.

These ladybuts are darker in color and their dots blend more into the wings.

My kids LOVED them untill they started biting! They hurt and burn too.

I wonder if they're the same ones? I didn't mind them either. We have them all over in and outside the house and cars.

Anyone know ANYTHING about them? dh said they're from Japan?[/COLOR]: :

[Elphaba]

we have those stupid things, too. i'm not as sweet as y'all are thought. i don't like 'em, and i kill 'em. i don't bother anybody outside, but once they come in my house, buh-bye. i spray them with my dr. bronner's peppermint soap. smells nice, kills them, and acts as a repellent to future invaders.
my husband has a deep dislike of ladybugs ever since he went to kuwait and they attacked him. he swears they are part of saddam's biological warfare!

[sunmountain]

Nope, ours don't bite.
The website above had lots of people's experiences with them, and from what I can gather, they are all along the east coast and along the Great Lakes. Ladybugs are kind of a totem for me and ds2 (the one who puts them in his cars and carries them around like pets), so I hate to kill them, but if they start biting, that's a different story.
I guess they eat dust mites, too, so I bet they are well fed in our house LOL

[daylily]

I remember the first time our house was invaded by ladybugs I spent a lot of time catching them and releasing them outside. Of course they just came right back in! Ours don't bite and they seem to prefer the windows on the west side of the house. Anyway, they're harmless so I ignore them.

[gardenmommy]

For those of you up north, those ladybugs might not be ladybugs. It is quite possible that they are soybean beetles. Considering that soybeans are one of the biggest cash crops in MI, it really isn't surprising. Especially when you consider the fact that all those beans are grown in a monoculture where the bean beetles' natural predators have been destroyed by years of chemical spraying. My mom (who is surrounded by farmland) is inundated with the beetles every fall. She literally vacuums them up by the hundreds. I don't know of any way to get rid of them or to keep them away from you, except perhaps with some of the suggestions listed above.