Bug advice needed please

[Lesley Jones]

Now I love our wildlife and that includes things with six, eight or even no legs. Slugs and snails are treated with respect and the ants that move into our kitchen every summer are left alone. We're being inundated with harlequin ladybirds though. It's only just started, but some years we have had as many as 200 move into our bedroom. I understand why they come indoors and why they choose this room - it's south facing with a white board exterior. After running around the windows for a bit, they tend to settle down in one corner where the intention is obviously to spend the winter.

The problem is that they can't survive because the room is too dry and they dehydrate. I tried misting them last year, but I didn't notice any make it through to the spring. I know what they do to our native species, but I'm not going to kill them. The numbers would make no difference anyway. I just find it sad to see them dying on the window sill and on the carpet and I wish I could do something better for them. Last year I tried one of those bug houses, but they're difficult to catch and getting them into the house is even harder. I'm not convinced any of them stayed for long.

So... is there a better way to trap them in numbers and where should they be deposited? Our native ladybirds used to overwinter in the depths of the pampas grass, but the badgers tend to dig it over looking for something to eat. We have a cellar that has two windows (with no glass) and it's always damp in there. The garage/barn is damp and dark, but then we're always in and out, so might cause a disturbance.

Any ideas welcome

 

[Pete Askew]

Maybe transferring them to a box with corrugated cardboard in the cellar (although I doubt you disturbing them in the garage would be an issue.)

 

[Adam Lewis]

If you're talking about the air being too dry, stick a bowl of water ontop of a radiator, or any container that is open. When the heating comes on, the water will heat slowly and evaporate eventually.
We used to have really dry air in our living room, and it does the trick a little.
As for housing bugs, not a clue

 

[Lesley Jones]

Cheers gentlemen. There's already a bowl of water by the radiator for the cats, but the room is bone dry. I know because we struggled with our green iguana when she lived in the room next door. She had a three foot pond and a waterfall in there and I chucked 3 gallons of water on her substrate every week, but the humidity was always low.

I'm looking into one of those vacuum traps to collect them. I don't mind picking them up, but the sheer number and their location make it almost impossible. Did I tell you we have mice living under the floorboards and in the walls?