Bug Squad

Sleeping with the aphids...that's what this monarch caterpillar was doing. It lived--and quite hidden at that--through the freezing cold, the rain, and the wind. It surfaced today on a milkweed in our Vacaville pollinator garden.

Can a praying mantis catch a monarch? Yes, it can. And yes, it does. It was Sept. 14, 2013. As I approached a Vacaville supermarket, I noticed pink lantana blooming furiously near the entrance, and then, a familiar-looking butterfly quietly sipping nectar. "Ah, there's a monarch," I observed.

News flash: Santa shops at the Bohart Museum of Entomology gift shop at UC Davis. Yes, he does.

Mark your calendars! Mark your calendars for the eagerly awaited open houses and special events at the Bohart Museum of Entomology.

Remember the celebrated image of George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and John Lennon crossing Abbey Road in single file outside their studios in London? It's the cover of their final album, "Abbey Road," released Sept. 26, 1969. All the Beatles, except Harrison, are wearing designer suits.