17 June 2019 7-spot Ladybird Mill Hill

18 May 2019
A 14-spot Ladybird, Propylea quattuordecimpunctata, landed on me near the Tollbridge.

8 April 2019
Two 7-spot Ladybirds were seen on White Deadnettle underneath the Adur Flyover.

2 October 2016 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, on Yarrow on the Downs Link Cyclepath at Old Shoreham, on its own.

10 October 2010
A few 7-spot Ladybirds were seen on the southern bank of Buckingham Cutting and the Pixie Path.

19 November 2009
A Harlequin Ladybird crawled over a wooden post at the top of the southern steps leading down to the lower slopes of Mill Hill.

8 October 2009
At least a dozen Harlequin Ladybirds resided on Ivy on the Pixie Path.
 

8 September 2009 The larva of a Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis, was spotted at the top of Buckingham Park. It reared up when being photographed.

6 June 2008 The larva of a Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis, was spotted on the verges of the Waterworks Road, Old Shoreham.

25 May 2008
A Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis succinea, sat stationary on a Stinging Nettle on the verge of the footpath section of the Waterworks Road, Old Shoreham.

I do not seem to have made a note of the first 7-spot Ladybird,Coccinella septempunctata, of the year.

11 October 2007
A Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis succinea, crawled over the Ivy on the Pixie Path approach to Mill Hill.
 

8 June 2007 A 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, spotted on the Buckingham Cutting, north Shoreham.

5 May 2007 A Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis succinea, was spotted alongside the drainage ditch between the two fields (one of Broad Beans and the other of flowering Oil Seed Rape) directly north of Cuckoo's Corner. This is the first one with a white head I have discovered.  Recognising the Harlequin Ladybird

9 April 2007 In passing I thought the ladybirds on the Alexanders on the Coastal Link Cyclepath just south of the Toll Bridge were the usual 7-spot Ladybirds but when I had a look a the photograph it turned out to be an immigrant alien Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis succinea. (TQ 207 059) Harlequin Ladybird Survey

2 April 2007
The small ladybird Halyzia sedecimguttata was seen on the stem of an Alexander plant next to the Slonk Hill south path near the top of Slonk Hill Farm Road before the bridge over the A27.

27 March 2007
Only occasional 7-spot Ladybirds, Coccinella septempunctata, were seen on the Pixie Path approach to Mill Hill from the Waterworks Road.

19 March 2007
The 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, are frequently seen around, all of them on the leaves of Alexanders. They are the only ladybirds seen.

9 March 2007
A small (6 mm long) immigrant alien Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis succinea, was spotted on an Alexander leaf on the Pixie Path approach to Mill Hill from the Waterworks Road. (TQ 210 063)

Harlequin Ladybirds were introduced to North America in the 1970s as an "environmentally friendly" alternative to pesticides and quickly swept across the continent, driving out domestic species and other aphid-eating bugs. Harlequins are more adaptable than most ladybird species, living in trees as well as the ground. In the spring, they out-compete rivals for aphids. Like all ladybirds, the Harlequin Ladybird undergoes complete metamorphosis and as such has an egg, larval, pupal and adult stage. Pre-adult development takes about 14 to 20 days at 25 ºC and adults can begin to lay eggs after 5 days. A single female can lay over a thousand eggs.
Harlequin Ladybirds feed most commonly on aphids, but have a wide food range, also feeding on scale insects, adelgids, the eggs and larvae of butterflies and moths, many other small insects, including other ladybirds, pollen, nectar, and sugary fluids, including honeydew and the juice from ripe fruits.

UK Ladybird Survey
Harlequin Ladybird Survey

2 March 2007
In a brief burst of early afternoon sunshine, I came across my first 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, of the year on the leaves of Alexanders at the top of Chanctonbury Drive (SE of the bridge to Mill Hill). I saw at least a dozen, some in pairs, without trying to look for them.

2 February 2007
The first 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, of the year is spotted on Lancing Manor Allotments.

16 October 2006
7-spot Ladybirds, Coccinella septempunctata, were frequently seen on the wasteland. This common species is not mentioned in middle of the year, because it is not though newsworthy enough. Its observation is a bit erratic and perhaps worth a study if time allows.

15 October 2006
Harlequin Ladybirds, Harmonia axyridis (larvae and adults, colour forms succinea and spectabilis), were discovered in large numbers in Portslade. Although only ten were actually seen, there could have been hundreds or even thousands in the trees and bushes on Portslade Recreation Ground (TQ 258 056).
 

The Harlequin Ladybird is an alien invasive species that has spread across England from the south-east since 2004, when it was first recorded in Sussex.

27 May 2006 This little red beetle (not a ladybird) was spotted on the Sompting Brooks, where the gardens meet the wild strouds. It is only about 6 mm long. Report & Photograph by June Bratton It is Endomychus coccineus and it is sometimes called the False Ladybird. It feeds on the fungus on the bark of rotten deciduous trees. Identification by Malcolm Storey (BioImages) on the British Insects Yahoo Group Adur Beetles

21 April 2006 I spotted my first alien Harlequin Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis spectabilis, on a flower in a north Shoreham garden. The white facial markings are diagnostic.  Harlequin Ladybird Survey Originally misidentified as a Kidney-spot Ladybird, Chilocorus renipustulatus; it was only correctly identified on 16 October 2006. 7-spot Ladybirds were frequently seen on wasteland and in gardens.

1 April 2006

8 July 2005

7 June 2005
Dovecote Bank
There was a small red ladybird and it was so small that without my magnifying glass handy I could not even see how many spots it had. The photograph was out of focus because of its small size. It was Subcoccinella vigintiquattuorpunctata (Linnaeus, 1758) the 24-spot Ladybird.

5 May 2005
The small 24-spot Ladybird, Subcoccinella vigintiquattuorpunctata, was recorded from McIntyres Field near Lancing Ring.

1 May 2005 14-spot Ladybird, Propylea quattuordecimpunctata Location: Waterworks Road  7 May 2005 This ladybird was frequently seen in Mash Barn Lane, Lancing. One was recorded on Slonk Hill Cutting (south) on 31 July 2005.

23 April 2005
An Orange Ladybird, Halyzia sedecimguttata  was spotted on a Bramble leaf in Mash Barn Lane, Lancing.

10 April 2005
On the south-facing A27 road embankment north of the Dovecote Estate, Shoreham, a 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, was on the wing: after crawling around a bit, it flew away.

19 March 2005
 

There were dozens of 7-spot Ladybirds, Coccinella septempunctata, on the Stinging Nettles north of Lancing Manor. Unlike the ladybirds of three days ago in Old Shoreham, these ladybirds were lively and appeared to be attempting to mate.

16 March 2005

The first ladybird of the year was a 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, in the Butterfly Copse (near the Waterworks Road).

18 July 2004
As the sun struggled to come out, so did the flying insects in the back garden in The Drive, Shoreham:
 

The small yellow 14-spot Ladybird, Propylea quattuordecimpunctata, flew away rapidly when disturbed.

25 May 2004
Beeding Hill. 

A small ladybird on a Dove's-foot Crane's-bill (Geranium) was a tiny (2 mm long) yellow beetle with black spots. The most likely species is the Sixteen-spot Ladybird, Tytthaspis sedecimpunctata.
British Insects Yahoo Group
The Coleopterist
British Beetles Yahoo Group

15 April 2004
A 7-spot Ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata, was noted with Germander Speedwell on the Waterworks Road.

12 April 2004
Clearing out my shed in south Lancing (TQ 186 044) produced a small ladybird that was black with just the two visible red spots. This seems to be the Kidney-spot Ladybird, Chilocorus renipustulatus.
Ladybird Images

6 March 2004
In the foliage and soil a few creatures were active in my south Lancing garden (TQ 186 044), the most colourful was a 22 spot Ladybird, Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata, a mere 4 mm long.
Lancing Beetles

11 July 2002
In the wooded fringes of Lancing Ring, I noticed a colourful multi-spotted yellow 22 spot Ladybird, Psyllobora vigintiduopunctata.

Checklist of UK Recorded Coccinellidae

Bumblebees
Hoverflies
Butterflies
Solitary Bees
Bees & Wasps
Flies
Beetles
Ladybirds
Moths
Grasshoppers & Crickets
Damselflies & Dragonflies