If the weather is cooling down, look for ladybugs underneath rocks or in hollow trees since they’re trying to find warm spots. [2] X Research source If you don’t want to pick up the ladybug, rest your hand on the surface next to it and wait for the ladybug to crawl right on or sweep a butterfly net along the edges of tall grass to scoop up ladybugs.
A cardboard food box with resealable flaps make excellent temporary housing for ladybugs. Plus, it’s easy to poke small holes into the top of the box. Plan on moving it to a bigger habitat container within a few hours. Glass traps heat, so you don’t want to keep the ladybug in there for much longer.
To coax the ladybug to its new habitat, use a soft brush to gently brush it into the container. If you put several ladybugs into 1 habitat, use a larger container instead of a small insect keeper so they have plenty of room.
If you can’t find any good natural structures, fold a few pieces of cardboard and drop them into the container to give your ladybug something to climb or hide under. It’s totally fine to put flowers into your habitat—ladybugs love sunflowers, marigolds, and cosmos.
Don’t leave a small dish of water in the habitat since your ladybug might fall in and couldn’t get out. If you don’t want to leave a paper towel or cotton ball in the habitat, fill a spray bottle with water and mist the inside walls of the habitat every day.
Although ladybugs eat a lot for their size, you only need to put food into the habitat once or twice a day. Remove uneaten food when you put the fresh food in.
If you’re having trouble finding aphids, look at the plants around where you caught your ladybug—ladybugs tend to stick close to sources of aphids. Ladybugs also eat tiny insects like mites, whiteflies, and scale insects that are also found on plant leaves and stems.
If you notice your ladybug hiding constantly, it might be a sign that the ladybug wants to be released back into the wild. As hard as it might be to let it go, it’s probably best to return your ladybug outdoors. Try to release your ladybug at the end of summer while it’s still warm outside. Otherwise, it may struggle to find food and shelter.
