14-Spot Ladybird

Image: © Lairich Rig Taken: 4 Sep 2018

(Propylea 14-punctata) See http://www.coleoptera.org.uk/species/propylea-quattuordecimpunctata (at UK Beetle Recording) for details. As the distribution map there makes clear, this species is not common here in Scotland (though it should be taken into account that such maps reflect the distribution, not just of species but, to some extent, of people who are interested in observing and recording them). The name is properly Propylea quattuordecimpunctata (with the number spelled out), but, as with other ladybird species, a less cumbersome form employing digits is often used. Not all ladybirds of this species show the same degree of spot fusion as the one in my picture; put simply, this one has more black and less yellow than many others. The base colour also varies a little: sometimes paler, sometimes more orange. This one was on the shoot of a young tree in a small patch of woodland near a road junction that is marked on the map. See Image for an earlier picture of this species by another contributor.

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