Dunedin Canmore has teamed up with the Central Scotland Green Network Trust (CSGNT) to provide more gardening opportunities for its tenants.

The Edinburgh, Lothians and Fife housing association is encouraging residents to embrace the biodiversity on their doorstep by providing them with online resources and gardening advice packs on how to create an optimum environment for ladybirds.

Led by CSGNT, the ‘Love Our Ladybirds’ biodiversity campaign aims to celebrate the diversity of the colourful beetles and raise awareness of the importance of the creatures to the environment.

Dunedin Canmore, which is committed to creating sustainable communities, is promoting the ladybird biodiversity campaign to its tenants, in order to engage them in protecting the environment.

The advice packs for tenants comprise of a range of valuable tools, including ladybird identification guides and facts, information on how to attract ladybirds to residential gardens, as well as guidance on how to undertake practical habitat creation and enhancement and build ladybird hibernation boxes.

Scientifically known as Coccinellidae, there are over 40 different ladybird species across the UK, with 15 in Scotland. Six of these are commonly found in Scotland including the seven-spot ladybird and two-spot ladybird, while another nine are rare or have localised distributions. All ladybirds have their own habitat, hibernation and food requirements and all share the same life-cycle.

Some ladybird species in Scotland are thriving whilst others are decreasing due to lack of suitable summer and winter habitats, loss of food plants and predation from the invasive Harlequin ladybird.

Conor Lanigan, community business initiative manager at Dunedin Canmore, said: “At Dunedin Canmore we’re committed to creating sustainable communities and Central Scotland Green Network Trust’s ladybirds biodiversity campaign is a great example of how we can provide valuable resources to our tenants, encouraging them to protect the environment and engage with nature.”

Emilie Wadsworth, biodiversity & heritage officer at CSGNT, said: “Ladybirds provide a valuable service to our eco-system and it’s fantastic that Dunedin Canmore is leading the way for housing associations by encouraging tenants to get involved. Often known as a gardener’s friend, most adult and larvae ladybirds are excellent predators of aphids and other pests and it is vitally important that we protect the biodiversity of the species currently found in Scotland.”

@DunedinCanmore