Counting spots
10 Jun 2010 by Evoluted New Media
The biggest ever survey of UK ladybirds is due to take place – and with 45 different species native to the country – this is no mean feat.
The biggest ever survey of UK ladybirds is due to take place – and with 45 different species native to the country – this is no mean feat.
It is hoped that the UK Ladybird Survey will identify regional variations in ladybird populations and investigate the relationship between ladybird pupae and their parasites. The survey will see scientists join forces with school children as part of the BBC Breathing Places Schools initiative which aims to get children to connect with nature.
“This will be a fantastic opportunity for school children to learn more about biodiversity through studying an iconic insect which is immediately familiar to everyone,” said Karen Gregory, BBC Breathing Places campaign project executive, “We’re very excited about the prospect of this survey making a real contribution to providing a lasting legacy to our understanding of the importance of maintaining the variety of life on earth.”
The UK Ladybird Survey – which has been running since the 1960s – is run by scientists from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, the University of Cambridge and Anglia Ruskin University in collaboration with the University of Hull.
“With the assistance of volunteer entomologists and more recently many members of the public, who have helped track the arrival of the invasive Harlequin ladybird,” said Dr Helen Roy, UK Ladybird Survey Coordinator from the Centre of Ecology & Hydrology, “This is a wonderful opportunity to engage school children across the UK in collective valuable scientific data and also inspire a new generation of biological reorders.”
The first confirmed record on the Ladybird Survey database is a 13-spot ladybird spotted in 1819 in Oxfordshire. This ladybird became periodically extinct in the UK, and then recolonised.
