New study shows fall in native ladybirds
FINDINGS from a study into the decline of the native ladybird carried out in Fordham have been released in a scientific journal.
Researchers from Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge released Diversity and Distributions, a document looking at the impact the harlequin ladybird has had since arriving in Britain back in 2004.
To help produce the journal, surveys were carried out at sites in Fordham, St Ives and Huntingdon, to assess the change in numbers of the native ladybird.
By examining thousands of records from the three sites, it showed that seven of the eight ladybird species native to Britain had declined as a result of the harlequin’s arrival.
The most severe decline was that of the two-spot ladybird, with numbers dropping by 44 per cent since the surveys were carried out.
“We are extremely grateful to the many volunteer recorders who have contributed their ladybird findings to the surveys,” said Dr Peter Brown, from Anglia Ruskin University, and co-author of the study.
“Results from our local field surveys show the same trends as those from the national public recording.”
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