LADYBUGOLOGY

Ladybugs are the perfect bug for a pet. On the creepiness scale, they are fairly benign; they're easy to identify; they neither sting nor bite; nor do they infest people's domiciles. For this entry in the Backyard Buddies series, Ross (Bug Watching with Charles Henry Turner, 1997, etc.) includes some good facts about ladybugs and their care, defining their scientific names and covering some ladybug lore. Sadly, the information that will intrigue readers is lost in a muddle of mediocre experiments and what reads as filler, e.g., writing down all there is to observe about a ladybug (``it's red'') may encourage scientific observation, but it may also strike some as busy work. The full- color photographs are helpful; the illustrations are sometimes informative, and other times clumsily executed cartoons. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 7-10)