Science in our back yard

So we were in our backyard not so long ago and my son Jack brought to my attention what appeared to be an infestation of really creepy looking bugs that were black with orange spots. They were all over the backyard and on all the play equipment and fence and plants and you name it, they were on it. I had no idea what they were or where they came from so when Jack asked me about them I just told him they were Ugly bugs and to stay away from them. I thought that they would probably just go away or if they didn't then we would figure something else out. I didn't know whether they were poisonous or stung or bite.

This is a picture of what we saw all over the backyard and they are just so gross looking.

I had pretty much forgotten about them until today when we were again playing outside. Andy and I were playing Badminton and Jack and Alex were playing safari behind the giant cactus in our back yard (that is another post). Anyway, when they got stuck trying to climb back out and I was taking pictures while their Daddy was helping them escape, I noticed a little something different. The fence was covered in those Ugly Bugs, but they were not moving. I also noticed that there were several large lady bugs around all of these Ugly Bugs and decided I would check it out on the internet.

On a brick by the back fence.

Turns out that Ladybugs don't start their life out looking so cute. These Ugly Bugs were the larva stage of the ladybugs and our yard is full of them. This is actually a good thing for our yard because I have noticed we do not have any flies around, but they are really disgusting looking. After reading up on the subject I realized these bugs must be feasting somethign fierce in our backyard because the full lady bugs were giant.

On the fence.

They also became less disgusting when I realized what they were turning into, but when I first saw them I was nervous because they looked so gross. Nature is a little disgusting, but who would have thought you could see an actual process like this happen in nature in our own back yard. Amazing for me and my kids. Good thing I didn't try to poison them all. Maybe my garden will have a chance this year.


This is Jack looking at all the bugs on the fence. You can't see them because they are so small, but the entire fence is covered in little groups of them.