I thought I'd do a quick check of my hive this afternoon since it was ~60F. I wanted to see if they had found the sugar I had placed on the newspaper (they haven't). What I did find was some ladybugs that had taken up residence inside the telescoping top and the inner cover. They weren't inside the hive. Did they just find a warm place to winter over? Should I be concerned? The bees don't seem to be doing anything about them (they're still down in the lower deep).
Those look like Asian lady beetles. We get an infestation of them up here every 5 or 6 years. They don't do much damage, but get in everywhere-and I mean everywhere. We kill 8 to 10 of them every day in the house. I haven't looked in my hives for them. Been too cold.
They are beneficial bugs, Are sold to gardners every year to keep aphids at bay. Fewer aphids mean better blooms and thus more pollen and nectar. So I would welcome them. As to answer the question, yes they were looking for a sheltered winter spot.
:goodpost: You are right Zulu. The ones I see outside, I leave alone. The ones that sneak into the house, however, are a different matter :lol:
the picture of the lady bugs looks quite varied when it come to color. are they all the same species?
I find them as well up here. Not thinking they could harm anything I have tended to leave them alone. Hey, we all look for a place to keep warm this time of year up here in the "tundra". :mrgreen:
Down here we tend not to kill anything that eats other bugs, being that we have so many (unless they kill the girls then I use a big hammer), I would just leave them be they pose no threat to the hive at all
bear in mind that some species ( don't know which )are vegatarians and as destructive as the other insects your looking to get rid of.
