A ladybug infestation, a U.S. marshals art seizure and an empty stand–the eighth edition of Art Basel Miami Beach had drama.

The fair drew fewer crowds, which made for a less frantic, more civilized event. Despite the weak dollar, there seemed to be a dearth of Europeans. (UPDATE: fair spokesman said fair had 43K attendees, up from 40K in 2008, but down from 45K in 2007)

The good news for dealers hoping to pay for their stands: sales were up over the Dec. 2008 edition.

Strong sales carried over at the NADA fair, where some exhibitors –LA’s Overduin and Kite for instance–sold everything in sight. Overduin presented a solo show of Dianna Moltzan’s slashed canvases, priced $4,500 apiece.

Other fringe fairs were sleepy, attracting little foot traffic and few sales.

Haitian-born Miami taxi driver James Cherubin noted the week was “very quiet” compared to recent times. “A couple years ago, if I’m working a 12-hour shift, I drop someone off and there would be someone waiting for a ride,” he said. “This year it takes 45 minutes to get a fare.”

Cherubin said he usually overheard his passengers discussing art purchases during fair week. Not this year. “For the whole thing I only hear one person say they bought something,” he said.

While the fair’s new layout got mixed reviews, the show’s widened aisles were easier to traverse than the jammed narrow aisles at London’s Frieze. A little more color coding would have been nice, to help visitors navigate the floor plan.

Word that thousands of ladybugs clogged convention center air vents,  infesting a few stands and some of the VIP lounges left me wondering if the the bugs’ appearance was a bizarre act of vandalism.  Fair management was trying to determine where the bugs came from, but no news so far.

A large corner stand assigned to New York dealer Christian Haye was unused by the dealer who had “shipping problems” according to fair organizers. Haye attended the fair but declined to discuss details of his empty stand with me when reached on his cell phone. The telephone number at his 57th Street gallery is disconnected.

The fair’s biggest hoopla surrounded a feud between Zurich’s Galerie Gmurzynska and New York dealer Asher Edelman, stemming from a default court judgment for about $765,000. Read more on that here. Two days later, the works were returned to Gmurzynska’s stand in exchange for funds turned over to Edelman.