Survey to spot our ladybird population

A major citizen scientist project has been launched by the Irish Wildlife Trust to build a national picture of the distribution of native ladybirds.

There are 28 species of ladybird recorded in Ireland, but there is a huge gap as to which ladybirds are still out there and how they are dispersed.

Building a picture of the distribution of native ladybirds has also become an urgent task because there is a new ladybird in town — the harlequin (Harmonia axyridis).