Anyladybirdwill tell you that it ’s bad enough when an trespassing mintage comes along and eats your supply of aphid , but what really annoys them is catch asexually - transmitted illnessfrom those very intruders . Unfortunately for the ladybirds of Britain , a large Asian species is currently pullulate the country , carrying with it a fungus that is passed on during coupling . Known as theharlequin ladybird , the species originates in China and Japan and is thought to have first been introduce to the UK as a innate pest control in 2004 . Typically black with red fleck and larger than most native British coinage , these prolific predators not only outcompete the local for aphids , but also regularly eat the eggs and larvae of other ladybird beetle . Yet the threat impersonate by these lethal trespassers does n’t stop there , as they also transport the Laboulbeniales fungus , which can cover the exoskeleton of septic individuals . Fortunately for humans , our skeletons are inside our organic structure , which means the fungus ca n’t pretend us and there is no need to worry . However , reports are emerging of large swarms of harlequinsinvading citizenry ’s home plate , with population currently boom . Like most ladybirds , the specie hibernate during the winter in small cracks and crack in trees or rock and roll , although gap between family brick or around loose - fitting windows will also do nicely . With spring now beginning , the insect are emerge from their slumber – known as a diapause – which is why their presence is suddenly being felt so strongly in homes across the UK.The best way to keep the ladybirds out of your abode is to make certain all room access and windows are properly varnish . Meanwhile , the foreign harlequins are potential to continue to precipitate a drop in universe numbers among native metal money , although this is expected to balance out at some point , and local ladybug are unlikely to be completely wiped out by these Eastern invaders and theirsexual fungus . A exchangeable scenario has already pass off in the US , where harlequin ladybug were introduced around 25 years ago as a mean value of controlling aphid numbers , and have become established as one of the most common ladybird species in the country .