Master Gardeners of Ventura County
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Master Gardeners of Ventura County

Posts Tagged: ladybugs

The Good Luck at UC Davis Picnic Day

Remember when San Francisco 49'ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk credited his spectacular 51-yard catch in the 2024 NFC championship game with the Detroit Lions to a ladybug (note that entomologists correctly call it a "lady beetle") landing on his...

A lady beetle, aka ladybug, devouring on aphid on the UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A lady beetle, aka ladybug, devouring on aphid on the UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A lady beetle, aka ladybug, devouring on aphid on the UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A cellar spider snares a lady beetle in a Vacaville pollinator garden. The red droplet is reflex bleeding, the beetle is emitting an alkaloid toxin to protect it from predators. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A cellar spider snares a lady beetle in a Vacaville pollinator garden. The red droplet is reflex bleeding, the beetle is emitting an alkaloid toxin to protect it from predators. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A cellar spider snares a lady beetle in a Vacaville pollinator garden. The red droplet is reflex bleeding, the beetle is emitting an alkaloid toxin to protect it from predators. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Monday, April 15, 2024 at 8:00 AM
Focus Area Tags: Agriculture, Innovation, Natural Resources, Pest Management, Yard & Garden

Lady Beetles, Unite!

That lady beetle, aka ladybug, that landed on the shoe of San Francisco 49”ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk just before the NFL championship game, apparently didn't show up at the Super Bowl.  The 49'ers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs, but...

Three lady beetles, aka ladybugs, form a Leaning Tower of Pisa on the UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Three lady beetles, aka ladybugs, form a Leaning Tower of Pisa on the UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Three lady beetles, aka ladybugs, form a Leaning Tower of Pisa on the UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Wednesday, February 14, 2024 at 7:06 PM
Focus Area Tags: Agriculture, Environment, Innovation, Natural Resources, Pest Management

Lady Beetle Lovers, Unite!

Luck be a lady! Little kids love selecting lady beetles, aka ladybugs, at the UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management (UC IPM) booth at Briggs Hall during the annual campuswide UC Davis Picnic Day. The excitement, the capture, the...

A lady beetle, aka ladybug, gets ready to devour an aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A lady beetle, aka ladybug, gets ready to devour an aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A lady beetle, aka ladybug, gets ready to devour an aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Get in line! A lady beetle devouring oleander aphids. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Get in line! A lady beetle devouring oleander aphids. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Get in line! A lady beetle devouring oleander aphids. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The larvae of lady beetle devour aphids, too. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The larvae of lady beetle devour aphids, too. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The larvae of lady beetle devour aphids, too. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A lady beetle and her eggs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A lady beetle and her eggs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A lady beetle and her eggs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at 5:03 PM
Focus Area Tags: Agriculture, Environment, Innovation, Natural Resources, Pest Management, Yard & Garden

'A Lady in Red': Petal Pusher?

It wouldn't make the news, even if it were a "Slow News Day." "Lady in Red Climbs Neon-Pink Petals in Search of Aphids." Lady beetles, aka ladybugs, are coming out of their winter hibernation now and they're hungry. Aphid-hungry. We spotted...

A lady beetle nestled in an ice plant blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A lady beetle nestled in an ice plant blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A lady beetle nestled in an ice plant blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Let's climb! A lady beetle begins her ascent--up an ice plant blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Let's climb! A lady beetle begins her ascent--up an ice plant blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Let's climb! A lady beetle begins her ascent--up an ice plant blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

How am I doing? Am I doing this right? Lady beetle stops. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
How am I doing? Am I doing this right? Lady beetle stops. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

How am I doing? Am I doing this right? Lady beetle stops. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

I did it! I climbed my Mount Everest and I'm about to descend. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
I did it! I climbed my Mount Everest and I'm about to descend. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

I did it! I climbed my Mount Everest and I'm about to descend. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, March 2, 2023 at 3:35 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Innovation, Natural Resources, Pest Management, Yard & Garden

Up, Close and Personal with Beetles

Seen any lady beetles, aka ladybugs, in your yard this year? Now that the sun's out and the worst California storms are over, check your yard for lady beetles. We saw several of them on our agave this morning. The center of the plant looked like...

A birds-eye-view of a wintering  agave. Can you spot the lady beetles, aka ladybugs? (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A birds-eye-view of a wintering agave. Can you spot the lady beetles, aka ladybugs? (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A birds-eye-view of a wintering agave. Can you spot the lady beetles, aka ladybugs? (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Closer...The camera zooms in on a pair of lady beetles on the agave. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Closer...The camera zooms in on a pair of lady beetles on the agave. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Closer...The camera zooms in on a pair of lady beetles on the agave. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Closer and closer. The agave plant looks like bunched-up, red-tipped asparagus from this view. The lady beetles are clearly visible. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Closer and closer. The agave plant looks like bunched-up, red-tipped asparagus from this view. The lady beetles are clearly visible. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Closer and closer. The agave plant looks like bunched-up, red-tipped asparagus from this view. The lady beetles are clearly visible. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Closer still. The ruby-red lady beetles are threading through the plant leaves to soak up some sun after the massive California storms. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Closer still. The ruby-red lady beetles are threading through the plant leaves to soak up some sun after the massive California storms. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Closer still. The ruby-red lady beetles are threading through the plant leaves to soak up some sun after the massive California storms. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Wednesday, January 18, 2023 at 3:55 PM
Tags: agave (1), beetles (16), Bohart Museum of Entomology (671), lady beetles (53), ladybugs (55), Lynn Kimsey (449), open house (103)
Focus Area Tags: Economic Development, Environment, Innovation, Natural Resources

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