Harlequin Ladybird

This is a harlequin ladybird. They were first spotted (sorry!) in Britain in 1994 and continue to gain numbers. They are seen as a threat to our native ladybirds as their numbers have spread so rapidly across the UK - see the Ladybird survey site.

They are interesting colours and patterns. They are usually larger than our traditional ladybirds but are still useful for eating aphids so we like to see any type of ladybird on our plot.