A few more ladybirds

I hope you won't mind a few more ladybirds.  First a species I have never seen before, an Adonis' Ladybird (Hippodamia variegata).

On a walk up the coast new Newbiggin-by-the-Sea on Sunday I found what looks like a Red Marsh Ladybird (Coccidula rufa) but in completely the wrong habitat.  It was swept from a grass tussock only 5m from the beach but is a wetland species and is normally found in or beside freshwater ponds.  Confirmation of the ID is awaited.

This was a bit easier, a 22-spot ladybird, also swept from grass.

The cold, wet, gloomy spring seemed to keep ladybirds in hibernation and there were still plenty to be found on gravestones in the last few weeks.

This is a Two-spot Ladybird (Adalia bipunctata).

And a four-spot quadrimaculata variant of the Two-spot Ladybird.

A four-spot spectabilis variant of the Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis).

And a four-spot quadrimaculata variant of the Two-spot Ladybird with a larger succinea form of the Harlequin Ladybird.

A two spot conspicua variant of the Harlequin Ladybird.

A Pine Ladybird (Exochomus quadripustulatus).  The photos don't give any impression of size but compared with the Harlequin this one is tiny.

A 10-spot Ladybird (Adalia decempunctata), also very small.

And a decempustulatus variant of the 10-spot Ladybird.

An Eyed Ladybird (Anatis ocellata), one of our largest species.

An Orange Ladybird (Halyzia sedecimguttata) with a Cream-spot Ladybird (Calvia quattuordecimguttata).

And every child's favourite, a Seven-spot Ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata).

STOP PRESS

This post was all ready to go last night but I found more ladybirds yesterday, hence this update. I was planning to look for bees on the Spetchells but got distracted by ladybirds.  On a few small Scots pine trees on Spetchell Two I saw these:

7-spot Ladybirds

A 10-spot Ladybird

Dozens of Pine Ladybirds

A Cream-streaked Ladybird

Harlequin Ladybirds

And several Eyed Ladybirds, this one with prominent rings around the spots

and this one without.

On the way back to the car I stopped at a patch of grassland in Prudhoe and in the very first tussock I found a new one for me, a Meadow Ladybird (Rhyzobius litura).  This is one of a group of small, relatively plain ladybirds known as inconspicuous ladybirds but is apparently pretty widely distributed.

And in the same tussock, a 24-spot Ladybird.

On the way home I called in at Ponteland churchyard and saw a Cream-spot Ladybird

and a couple of Harlequins.

So nine ladybird species in a day.  With practice I am gradually learning how, when and where to find ladybirds and how to identify them but there are plenty more to see and learn.  I'll keep an eye out for them while I am looking for bees and dragonflies as the weather warms (I hope).