You may have noticed lady bugs crawling on the inside and outside of your windows. Winter is over and they are trying to get back outside after wintering somewhere in your house. You will find more of them on the walls of you house they receive afternoon sun. (south and west facing walls) They are completely harmless but can be a nuisance. My youngest daughter called me to come up and remove one from her bathroom the other day. I got rid of it and on the way down the stairs I mumbled that's the first of about a thousand more she will see. Fortunately my daughter did not hear this comment but my wife did and I received the wife death ray stare.

According to entomologist, Dr Nancy Breischrom from the University of Maryland, from about 1960 until 1990 the USDA brought them in from Asia to control pests, mainly aphids and scale insects that were eating our apples and pecans. They were first found in swarms in Louisiana in 1988. The USDA imported lady bugs into Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Washington, and California. Lady beetle bugs can now be found in most of the U.S. and parts of Canada. These insects have no natural predators. They secrete a foul smelling fluid from their leg joints. When removing them you can use the catch and release method, my personal choice, or vacuum them up. (change you bag regularly) You do not want to smash them or some discoloration may occur on your wall, curtain, or where ever you swatted them. They can secrete a yellowish fluid before dying. They will eat pests in your yard and will not harm or eat any of your flowers or shrubs. These insects do not eat wood, food or clothing nor do they breed inside your house.

The gypsy moth was brought to this country in 1869 to start a silk industry. They got out and are now eating the forests in the eastern United States. Hopefully we have learned our lesson of not trying to control or modify the natural migration and natural habitat of insects and other animals. It never seems to work out. In fact it usually has disastrous consequences.