Asian ladybugs invading Germany

During the last few weeks ladybugs have swarmed out all over Germany looking for a nice warm place to hibernate. Ranging from dark orange to bright yellow their most distinctive feature is the number of spots. While the common European ladybug has only two to seven spots the Asian ones go the whole hog with up to eleven spots on varying backgrounds, giving them the alternate name Harlequin beetle. In some places they are even known as Halloween beetle for their tendency to become conspicuous around this time of year. Originally imported to Europe as the natural enemy of plant lice (aphids) they have long liberated themselves from greenhouses and nurseries and roam freely.

Like in Goethe’s ballad “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”, the spirits summoned by hobby and professional gardeners are proving not that easy to control. They are more resilient than the indigenous species and feast not only on plant lice but also on the larvae of their European relatives, slowly but surely eliminating them from local fauna.


These bugs are not a danger per se, they do not carry transmittable diseases, they are just a pain. Zoologists recommend trapping them in a glass and dumping them outside pending the biological solution once the weather grows cold.

Vintners do suffer from this invasion: The bugs make themselves comfy in grapes and are crushed, releasing a secretion whose bitter taste pervades the wine. This bitter secretion is the main reason that the Asian ladybug has no natural enemies. Let’s face it, they’re here to stay – just not in my apartment.

For Brits: Read "ladybird" throughout for "ladybug". Or go all scientific and call it a lady beetle.

We live over by Riem Arcaden and we have about 10-20 getting in the house each day. Great fun for my son but my wifes a bit miffed.
Ironic issue being my wife is Chinese, maybe it's a culture thing??

Really? Where is there a warm place to hibernate in Germany?

Anyway, nice story . . . pretty bugs.

Oh, thanks for this tidbit of information. I was wondering where all the ladybugs on my balcony came from. I have to count the spots now, I'm intigued whether they're european or asian!

This is unfortunately not just limited to Germany; last autumn my flat was infested with these Harlequin ladybirds (in London). I don't usually kill things, especially not pretty ladybirds but in the end I was killing a minimum of 20 a day - there were hundreds. Not seen any yet this autumn but they are pretty resilient. At least they entertained my cat when they flew around. That' another thing - they're loud little critters!
There's a website which is tracking this infestation which you can say how many you have roughly and which kind of Harlequin ladybird they are. I'll just look for it.. (edit, scratch that it's just a British survey. However lots of useful info on their site).

Cleo the Cat is only interested when they're flying. Once she's whacked them out of the air or brushed them off the window and they hold still she wanders off looking for another popsicle stand. Human Cat, on the other hand, freaks out. She faced about 20 around the window yesterday and was in a state of nerves after removing them with dustbroom and dustpan.

These are the 2 types I had:

Thinks: cane toad, just not so ugly.
There was a spot on the radio about this yesterday. Apparently the asian versions consume around twenty times as many aphids as their indigenous counterparts. Which is good news and bad news.

A traditional german song (nursery rhyme) dating back to the thirty years' war goes as follows:
Flieg, Maikäfer flieg,
dein Vater ist im Krieg,
deine Mutter ist in Pommerland,
Pommerland ist abgebrannt
Flieg, Maikäfer flieg.

I killed one of these in my apartment two days ago

Phew! That's one out of the way.

Our building has an infestation in our stairwell. They all huddle together in groups of 30 or so strong, to keep warm I guess. My son loves them. Fortunately our apartment is well-insulated enough that we don't have any inside.

I've heard that the Asian lady bugs bite, does anyone here have any experience with that?

Yes, they bite from my experience in the Midwest. These bugs are all over the midwest and were brought in with same purpose in mind. They eat aphids on soybeans. I found hundreds in between boards and cracks in the barns. Hopefully, we have learned our lesson on transplanting species ... some have been real buggers ... Zebra Mussels are the latest bane in the States; filling in pipes in Hoover Dam ... others we just learned to cope with ... Dandy Lions and English House Sparrows for example ... it seemed like a good idea at the moment

I was in Grunewald today and witnessed the ladybird feminist uprising. They have obviously read Simone de Beauvoir's the second sex and are championing the cause. Someone needs to remind these critters that a women's place is at home with the children
Ladybird Ladybird (Wikipedia)

We have tons of them here in Minnesota right now.

Haven't seen any yet. Though my co-workers were talking about them the other day, and apparently they have a couple in their apartments.

hmm, there is a chapter in Max und Moritz in which they collect "Maikäfer" and put them into their teachers bed...

I'm also from Minnesota, but I don't remember seeing lady bug infestations or being bit by one. THey also were a different type of ldaybug. Maybe that's changed? I remember box-elder bugs being a major pain in the ass though. There were so many of them the asphalt would be dyed red.

We had loads living in the front door frame. They all shifted as I opened the door, and I had to flick them out with a piece of paper.

Sweet.

Well, they arrived in Düsseldorf this weekend. Spent a while over the weekend with a glass and a piece of paper trying to get them out of the apartment. They do seem to wait until the day has warmed up a bit but then are out in force. What a pain having to keep the windows closed during the hottest part of the day, but preferable to me than having them crawling or flying all over the place.

Ironically enough guess what I noticed over the weekend... loads of these things all over the front door frame and front window frames. They haven't got through into our flat YET but I plan on getting rid of them before they do so again as I don't want to have to dispose of their corpses over the next few weeks from the lounge. Any sprays which can be recommended?

Well, I'm glad I read this on TT. I had a little ladybug invasion yesterday (north of Berlin) and was wondering what it was all about. Around 20 or so tried to crawl in through an open window. Can't say I found them cute in that number! The cats were pretty fascinated though.

I can't really find any info on how to kill these but a couple of sites suggested vacuuming them and then replacing the hoover bag as they start to smell bad after being vacuumed (I guess from the poison they excrete). I shall try this approach!

It just seems so wrong to kill a ladybug. What happens to the luck they bring you if you kill them? Bad karma...

It does, yes. Then I look again at the 100+ little critters and feel less remorse.

But these particular ones not only eat aphids, they also eat the larvae of the native ladybirds and other beneficial insects.

Plus they are poisonous and bite humans!
Oh noes!

People hate the cute gray American squirrel because it is pushing the native European one out. But hey, that's human aided evolution.

*ducks and runs*

Maikäfer aren't ladybirds though.

Apparently in India these little cuties have crossed themselves with the much bigger and more dangerous "Templebug ".
Some of these things reach can staggering proportions! The "Templebug" being highly poisonous and equipped with Lancelike mandibles has been known to attack house pets and cattle,one reported incident involved three of these things flying off with a puppy, which was later found unharmed ,but very very nervous, The little tyke was lucky that these thing don't eat Dog Food.

Gather them in a ziplock bag and put it in the freezer.
For some reason they don't fly into my room, only Cat's.

That image of the giant ladybugs carrying off a dog reminds me of "Godzilla vs. Mothra" except that was a giant moth and it was in Japan...oh well, close enough.

Actually the red squirrel might be on the brink of making a comeback
Ray of hope for the red squirrel (BBC News)

So I'm spotting a trend with cats and these ladybirds. Here's an idea, lets introduce millions and millions of cats and they'll take care of the ladybird problem.
Genius!

The Grey Squirrel Annihilation League Red Squirrel Protection Partnership is pledged to take back the UK for red squirrels. 20,000 down, 2.7 million to go.