Silently descending onto Iowa State, Asian lady beetles have ambushed the campus in mass numbers.

While they don’t leave as much of a mess as the crows that descend on Ames during the winter, they have still been a nuisance to the students and faculty.

The beetles come from soybean fields, said Ken Holscher, associate professor of entomology.

Appearing in Iowa soybean crops around 1995, the beetles are actually helpful in the fields by getting rid of aphids, tiny insects that are harmful to the crop.

The hot, dry summer has been the greatest factor contributing to the beetles’ large numbers, Holscher said. The conditions increased the number of aphids in the field, which in turn provided more food for the beetles.

The beetles are currently looking for a place to hibernate for the winter, and the insects are attracted to the sunny side of light-colored housing, he said.

“They need to fumigate the campus,” said Dennis Girsch, freshman in hotel, restaurant, and institution management.

Associate Professor of English Barbara Haas said the beetles assembled in massive quantities at the southeast exit of Ross Hall and piled up on the entrance over the weekend. The insects had even found their way into her sunglasses while she was wearing them.

“I’m not going out that exit

until they’re gone,” she said.

There is no way to repel the beetles, and the only way to stop them is to block all the places in a house or dorm where they can get in, Holscher said. “The only thing that’s going to stop them is colder temperatures,” he said.

The beetles aren’t an immediate threat to anything on campus.

“They’re not hurting anything — they’re just a nuisance,” Holscher said.