How can I get ladybugs out of my house?

ASK THE HORT AGENT

Question How can I get ladybugs out of my house?

Answer While they are not ladylike, everybody calls them ladybugs. Entomologists call them lady beetles. For some reason, entomologists say there is a difference between a “true bug” and a beetle. The specific type of beetle crawling around your windows is the multicolored Asian lady beetle, Harmonia axyridis. While I respect the superior intelligence that a normal entomologist exhibits, I still call them ladybugs.

Ladybugs are considered beneficial. They eat bad insects like aphids and scales. Their round shape is not intimidating. In fact, their delicate little feet tickle your skin as they walk around like a PACMAN game. Interestingly enough, PACMAN was invented in Japan by a Namco employee named Toru Iwatani. He called it Pakku-Man, which was the Japanese word for “eating by snapping mouth.” Mmmmmm. Asian lady beetles……Pakku-Man. Is it possible? Great ideas are often inspired by nature.

While we love ladybugs in the spring and summer, their presence in our homes during the fall is not welcome. The average gardener wouldn’t mind overwintering a ladybug or two. However, they roll in the house by the hundreds. We’re trying to watch tv while listening to the tick, tick, tick of ladybugs bouncing off our light fixtures at night and windows during the day.

The little buggers emit an orange stain through their legs if you smash them. So you can’t let your kids loose with a fly swatter or there will be little orange spots all over the walls and windows. Large numbers of indoor ladybugs can cause air quality issues that can trigger allergies and/or asthmatic reactions.

Since the overuse of insecticides indoors can also cause air quality issues, we are left with the tried-and-true method of vacuuming. One problem with vacuuming is the odor from the accumulating dead beetles inside the vacuum cleaner bag, particularly if the bags are not changed frequently. This can be a serious issue for people who become sensitized to beetles and develop allergic reactions.
Try inserting a knee-high stocking into the vacuum's extension hose. This will allow you to trap the beetles inside the stocking. You can simply tie a knot in the end of the stocking, when you remove it from the extension hose.

You then have a few options. The more environmentally-minded individuals can keep the beetles in the refrigerator over the winter and release them into the garden next spring. Yaaaaa! Unfortunately, most of the ladybugs will not survive the long winter's nap in your frig. Boooo! An alternative is to dump the beetles into a container, freeze them, and then scatter their carcasses in the yard. This will teach the remaining beetles a lesson about invading your home. This last option also allows you to reuse the stocking (to catch more beetles, not to wear it). If you decide to vacuum and then release the ladybugs outside, remember the pet cat that Fred Flintstone threw outside every time that cartoon came on. Enough said.
For more info on the invasive ladybugs, visit http://insects.ncsu.edu/harmonia.htm If you don’t have internet access, then call me at 910-893-7533 or email me at gpierce@harnett.org

The multicolored Asian ladybeetle is not native to the US. The best response to Pakku-Man is Vaccu-Man.

Gary L. Pierce

Horticulture Extension Agent