Bug Squad

Yes, monarch butterflies qualify for the Endangered Species list. But no, we can't protect them because we don't have the money. That's the gist of what the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) said today.

Honey bees have nothing on the late Helen Reddy (Oct. 25, 1941-Sept. 29, 2020), an Australian-born singer who roared like a lion: "I am woman, hear me roar." Her hit song, "I Am Woman," released in 1972, became an anthem for the women's liberation/equal rights movement back in the '70s.

Nope, not an Asian giant hornet. Not even close. It's a Jerusalem cricket, sometimes called a "potato bug." The be-on-the-lookout (BOLO) for the Asian giant hornet detected in Canada and Washington state has resulted in scores of queries and submissions of not-even-close specimens.

Do you know your spiders? If you engage in social media, you've probably seen a "what-is-this" query about a spider that some unsuspecting person discovered quite unexpectedly in a garden, bedroom, bathroom or garage.

A scientific research project may initially be deemed a failure, but failure can lead to success. It did recently at the University of California, Davis.