Warning - extreme close-up bug photos - ladybird larva eating an aphid

[JILLY JACKSON]

Onefivenine!Lovely,just lovely,please keep the photoes coming ,never seen a ladybird devouring an aphid before,just fascinating!Thanks.

[eye1der]

loving these shots...please keep em coming

[onefivenine]

Beautiful photo.

Took a LOT of effort to type that due to my bitter, envious rage

Onefivenine!Lovely,just lovely,please keep the photoes coming ,never seen a ladybird devouring an aphid before,just fascinating!Thanks.

loving these shots...please keep em coming

Thanks again you guys. All these responses have really made my day.

Before we moved into a house with a garden I only had one real hobby - photography.

Now I have two

And being able to combine the two... well, Carlsberg don't do hobbies... or do they?

[Lemon]

I did bee shots today! On the flowering clover, (excuse not to mow back garden now! actually, I don't do it anyway, hubbs does! ) and on the flowering Hebe's. Was only using a Fuji 6.3 megapixel - not hubbs Canon so they aren't anywhere in the same league as yours!

I can't do the extreme close ups as the camera can't manage to focus!

[onefivenine]

Cheers Lemon. Maybe grab the OH's sometime if you want closer shots. You won't get shots like this with a point and shoot. If you could I wouldn't be lugging many kilograms of kit about with me everytime I go out snapping!

[Mustard]

GREAT pics, love em to bits, keep them coming if you can

[onefivenine]

GREAT pics, love em to bits, keep them coming if you can

Thanks mate!

Here's another shot of a ladybird larva from today. Adalia bipunctata is its Sunday name. It's got serious jaws on it!


Adalia bipunctata

[Lemon]

Cheers Lemon. Maybe grab the OH's sometime if you want closer shots. You won't get shots like this with a point and shoot. If you could I wouldn't be lugging many kilograms of kit about with me everytime I go out snapping!

Yeah, you're right onefivenine - just can't be bothered getting the thing out and changing lenses - his sooper-dooper close up lens is a bit heavy.

Here's a couple of my bee shots...

[Lemon]

Ewww! What is it sucking? An aphid? Looks like it's sucking the stem!

Mind you, I could do with a few of those in my garden....I could host a banquet for ladybird larvae!

Starters = greenfly served on tomato stems
Main course = green aphids served on young juicy rosebuds
And Dessert = mixed aphids served on a bed of strawberry leaves

Anyone for dinner?

[onefivenine]

That second shot really captures the action. Very nice! I always prefer the side-on shots over the overhead ones. Straight on portraits though - they're the holy grail shots for me.

[Lemon]

Thanks! I don't usually go in for capturing wildlife but there were so many buzzing around the clover and Hebe's I couldn't resist!

I know what you mean about the patience! With the clover, there was so much of it about you couldn't tell if the clump you were focused on was going to be visited! The hebe was easier as there are tiny flowers on the flowering bit so they just spend longer going round and round the flower head!

[helanuels]

That is absolutely fascinating!! I love the photos. My brother has a camera where you can focus the foreground and blur the background, fantastic! thanks!

I bought some ladybird larva online last week, and placed them around the garden and in my growhouse. Thought I'd probably never see them again, but found one today, guarding my first cucumber! And considerably larger than last week.

please can you tell me where you bought them? I think I need some. Thanks, Hx

[onefivenine]

Thanks helanuels
I got the larvae from here.
It's bizarre that you can buy live insects online!