So far this Fall season has been amazing, with warm temperatures, not too much rain, and beautiful fall colors on display, but for some reason there has been an unusual amount of Ladybugs.

Ladybugs (scientifically: Coccinellidae) are a small beetle that has a characteristic orange or red dome-shaped wing cluster that usually have black dots.  They’re not native to the United States.  They were introduced to this country in the 1970’s to help farmers battle aphids that were destroying their crops.

Now the question is, why do we have what seems like way more Ladybugs than we should have right now? They are actually Asian Ladybugs and I had to fend off about 50 in my front entry way yesterday. Although my cats enjoyed it because it gave them something to do.

The answer has a few different ones. First, the warm and dry summer provided a perfect breeding ground for aphids, which led to a larger population of their nemesis the Ladybug.  Second, the warmer fall has let the Ladybug population continue to grow.  Now that winter is approaching, they’re trying to find shelter for the cold months ahead.  With each warm cycle this autumn, the Ladybugs are re-energized into this search. And that is why they've been invading our homes, just becareful because these ones bite.

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