Bug Squad

If insects could celebrate, the California dogface butterfly would be celebrating the 50th anniversary of its designation as the California State Insect. But they can't. So scientists and butterfly enthusiasts will. The history is intriguing.

UC Davis undergraduate students are in for a scientific treat. When the 11th annual UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day takes place Sunday, March 6, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Bohart Museum of Entomology at UC Davis is currently closed to the public due to COVID pandemic precautions, but a jubilant crew helped celebrate the Feb. 1st birthday of its director, Lynn Kimsey, a UC Davis distinguished professor of entomology who has administered the museum since 1990.

Congratulations to UC Davis medical entomologist and humanitarian Thomas W. Scott, selected as one of the world's Highly Cited Researchers for the third consecutive year.

California's almond pollination season typically starts in mid-February, around Valentine's Day, but along the Benicia waterfront, the almond trees sometimes blossom as early as Jan. 1. The climate is warm and temperate.