Sorry still getting to grips with the photo things. i'll start again. can anyone identify these little fellas friends or foes Thanks knighter
If things are in balance, does it matter? By the looks of those fairly healthy leaves it doesn't seem to. Just my take though.
G'day knighter Tortoise beetles (of one description or another - the markings on the 'shell' gives them away) Dunno, it depends. As always, there would be an infinite number of variables to consider. But, at least now you can attempt to properly identify them. As such, I suggest using CSIRO's key: What bug is that? Cheerio, Markos
markos i have just found a page on the net that says these battle are of great benefit to the garden as they eat aphid whitefly ect ect .... Great stuff they can stay knighter
Always remember too that your beneficials need something to eat. So, if you have these, then aphids now become a friend, right? It really isn't about friend or foe, but balance. But, having beneficials means a healthier system, since what we normally call a beneficial is a predator (since they eat the things that eat what we want) and predators won't exist, if they don't have something to munch. Think of it this way. Imagine that I was a being who wanted what sheep ate, at least some of the time. They see me, who eats sheep and say, hey great, I have something that eats sheep. Well, without those sheep, I would be starving, so guess what, the presence of me says there are sheep - but the number of sheep is under control because I am there - so the being doesn't have to go out exterminating sheep. So the presence of your bug means that you do have something for it to eat, and that something is probably something you don't want, but you don't have to worry, since your friendly bug is keeping it under control.