Bug Squad

The date is set. The celebration of life for global bee expert Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis and a beloved scientist, is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 11 from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Putah Creek Lodge.

If you want to bee-come a beekeeper, bee scientists at the University of California at Davis will oblige.

If you've been finding more milkweed bugs than monarchs on your milkweed, join the crowd. Monarchs are scarce--at least around Solano and Yolo counties--but milkweed bugs are quite plentiful.

If you're a beekeeper or plan to be a beekeeper, you're aware of Public Enemy No. 1. That would be the varroa mite, Varroa destructor, an eight-legged external parasite that attacks and feeds on honey bees. Those mites can spread viruses and decimate a healthy colony.

Love is in the air. Or, more specifically, in the snapdragons. If you maintain a pollinator garden, you've probably seen female European wool carder bees (Anthidium manicatum) nectaring on flowers or scraping or carding fuzz for their nests.