Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: Coccinellidae

[best appreciated at full size against black] I have discovered that ladybugs and cucumber beetles can be found wandering around on thistle plants, which are now beginning to pop out of the ground all over our meadows. A couple of days ago, I was quietly watching this ladybug and taking pictures when I noticed a cucumber beetle nearby. "Hmmm...I wonder what will happen if these two meet?" You may not know this, but cucumber beetles are herbavores and suck the sap out of plants, though they will sometimes eat aphids. Ladaybugs are predators, and cucumber beetles are something they like to eat. I watched the scene unfold, and as they walked up and down leaves, they got closer and closer, until they made their way towards each other on the same stem. The second they met, they quickly touched antennae and both did a 180 and zoomed away from each other as fast as they could go! Honestly, I was so excited that both pictures I took came out blurry, but happily, this one was perfect! YAY! I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) NOTE! I have finally updated my profile and I hope you'll take a look to find out a little more about me and how important all of you are to my experience here on Flickr! www.flickr.com/people/sfhipchick/ This image was taken in March, 2012.

[best appreciated at full size against black] This is definitely Ladybug season!! If it's sunny out, I will have a 100% chance of finding a ladybug if I look at any of the new thistle plants that are beginning to grow. The other day I spent a few moments watching this little cutie pie and taking pictures whenever it was in a good position! At one point I think I heard him say, "Is this a good angle? Do my spots look nice this way?!" :D :D I think you'll all agree, this is one LOVELY LADYBUG!! :D Known as a Ladybug in North America, and Ladybird or Ladybird Beetle elsewhere, these insects (which aren't bugs) can be found worldwide and there are over 5,000 species known so far! They are known as beneficial insects and are often bought and released into gardens to control pest insects. If you would like to know more about Ladybugs, Wiki has a great page here: Wiki: Coccinellidae . There's also a fantastic site dedicated to Ladybugs here: Lost Ladybug Project . These images were taken in March, 2012.

[best appreciated at full size against black] Every year at this time, we begin to get ladybugs in the house, especially in our computer room. They crawl in through the vent for our air conditioner, and then fly around in the eaves where we can't reach them. I keep my eyes open to try to catch them when they're low enough on the wall, and then put them outside. This little guy was found crawling around on a power cord, too tired to fly anymore, so I scooped him up and brought him downstairs, when I noticed his pretty spots and thought it would be nice to take a picture. When I put him on the counter, he looked dead! But then he started moving again and crawling around and I realized I'd made him "play dead". I decided that it would be fun to show this, so I put him on a leaf, laying on his back and asked him to please hold still for a picture! After his moment of stardom, I carried him outside and put him on some grass with a droplet of water and wished him a happy life! To carry on the theme of "playing dead" I decided to make this a selective color piece! I hope you like it! :) These images were taken in March, 2012.

Last night I found this darling ladybug on the floor in our bathroom, and at first I thought it was dead. But then I thought I saw it move, so I carefully picked it up and stared at it as it lay on its back in the palm of my hand. After about 10 seconds, I saw a leg twitch and then another. Then all six legs were waving around, antennae moving, and this guy was doing his best to flip over! Hooray! I decided to keep him overnight and turn him into a star! In the morning, I took him out and let him crawl out onto a leaf, and got this picture to remember him by! :) Maria Flemming was born in Venezuela, raised in Canada, and is a world-traveler, author, poet, and law student.