In flagrante

Another odd day at work, busy and productive but odd.

Today's blip is a pair of ladybirds, caught in the act of making more ladybirds. Interestingly ladybirds were the first insect to be confirmed to have an explicitly sexually transmitted disease (STD). It's s parasite that lives under the wing case, and it can only be transmitted when they are doing this, being close as they are often for overwintering doesn't work apparently. I remember going to a talk by the late Michael Majerus where the work was presented. They just need to lay some eggs and then I can put the young on my apple trees to eat the aphids living there!

They are probably harlequins, being large, and having red/brown legs, but I'm no expert and I'm not sure. At the moment I don't care which species they are as long as they eat aphids.