Bug Squad

It's Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 1 and a female monarch butterfly flutters into our Vacaville pollinator garden. Me: "Welcome Ms. Monarch! Aren't you a little late for the migration?" Ms. Monarch: "No, I'm just a late bloomer,. so to speak.

If you attended the Bohart Museum of Entomology's private party, hosted by the Bohart Museum Society for its members and friends, you witnessed a praying mantis, a dragonfly, a honeybee, a monarch butterfly and a horse fly all getting along fabulously.

"This hanging potted plant ain't big enough for both of us!" That's what a female praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, seemed to be warning when she encountered another female on "her" hanging potted plant. So, how do you beat the competition? You defeat 'em and then you eat 'em.

Trick or treat? Treat, please, says this jumping spider. It's time to jump in to help the 13th annual UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day crowdunding project. It's a Super Science Day to be held Saturday, Feb. 10 on the UC Davis campus. It's a free and family friendly event.

Want to talk to a scientist about monarch butterflies? Then you'll want to attend the Bohart Museum of Entomology open house on Saturday, Nov. 4 from 1 to 4 p.m. in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane. Scientists will be there to answer your questions.