On 26 April 2024, two postage stamps worth PLN 4.90 each, of the 'Beneficial Insects' issue, were put into circulation.
The stamps feature drawings of insects: the seven-spotted ladybird and the autumn beetle.
Seven-spotted ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata)
There are more than 70 species of ladybird in Poland, and among them the most famous is the seven-spotted ladybird. This ladybird is found in agricultural crops, gardens, orchards, parks, forest edges, meadows, the banks of bodies of water - wherever it can find food. The adults and larvae are predators. They feed primarily on aphids, but also on other bugs, e.g. mealybugs, scale bugs, honey beetles, as well as fly and beetle larvae, young caterpillars of some butterflies, spider mites. The larva eats many more aphids than the adult beetle - up to 600 individuals during its lifetime. It overwinters singly or in groups in attics, lofts, flats, woodsheds, as well as in hiding places on tree bark or in mulch among leaves.
Autumn chaffinch (Aeshna mixta)
The Autumn Sailworm is a dragonfly that is mainly found by water, near ponds and lakes. The aquatic environment is essential for the development of its larvae. The autumn chaffinch does not travel long distances, however, a number of larger dragonfly species often fly to areas up to several kilometres away from bodies of water. All dragonflies are very active predators. They attack, among others, hymenoptera, butterflies and beetles in flight - mainly the insects most abundant in the area. The larvae prey on aquatic organisms e.g. snails, mosquito larvae, frog tadpoles. Dragonflies play an important role in the natural process of reducing the abundance of many mass crop and forest pests.
The stamps were printed offset using stochastic raster, on fluorescent paper, in a format of 40.5 x 40.5 mm, in an edition of:
125,000 units of each stamp. The sales sheet contains 5 stamps and a tag.
An FDC envelope was issued on this occasion.
Designer: Andrzej Gosik
- Condition: MNH (**)
- Year: 2024
- Catalog value: new