My air conditioning went out this weekend on the hottest day of the year so far. When the Tech checked out the problem, he found that one of those damned lady bugs (that are not really lady bugs) that infest this area every fall got into one of the contacts and shorted it out. I guess they don't conduct electricity very well.
Cost me $77 for the service call but still cheaper and quicker to get it running than I figured it would be.
David
Tell me more about these not-quite-a-ladybug-bugs. A friend is innundated with lady bugs. I'd never seen so many in one place. Are these some sort of newly-introduced to the US bugs?
R
Another asian import that has no natural North American enemies. In the Midwest the beetles also like to bite. Not nearly as hard on crops as Japanese beetles nor as destructive as the emerald ash beetle.
Joe
The US imports Asian *lady bugs* every year. Evidently they kill a lot of other problem bugs. But the longer we do this the fewer natural enemies we have to control the original problem. So if we stop importing the little bastards, the original problem will be worse than ever. For years my daughter told me ladybugs bite, and for years I said she was imagining it. Poor kid, I eventually caught on and started killing the little bastards. If you catch them at the right time in spring and fall when they gather together, you can either poison them or suck them up with a shop vac. And yes they stink if you just touch them. When I use the shop vac to get them, I first put a few inches of water in the vac, it helps to contain the odor. Just be sure to empty it... far from the house.
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