Beautiful day. Usual trail walk, now including the newest train trail "mountain" portion. Finished the day with a hot dog roast with family and friends. Put out some solar lamps so we could find the trail home... they're portable, so we can pick them up to store until we need them again. Probably our last such evening of the year.

Here's a ladybug -- but NOT our native one! Cute thing, right? If only... This is an import, not our more benign native species, which has a more red color rather than this orange.

This bunch looks for an over-wintering site about right now and is flying about everywhere! AND it bites. People thought it would be wonderful to have it eating aphids, particularly on roses. What a mistake!

Here's what Wikipedia says: "Although native species of coccinellids are typically considered benign, in North America the multicolored Asian lady beetle (Harmonia axyridis), introduced in the twentieth century to control aphids on agricultural crops, has become a serious household pest in some regions owing to its habit of overwintering in structures. It is similarly acquiring a pest reputation in Europe, where it is called the "Multicoloured Asian Ladybird" (In Britain: "Harlequin Ladybird")..."