Bug Squad

How would you describe the year 2017? Survival of the fittest? In the insect world, it's more like "survival of the flittest.

Surprise! Surprise! You never know what you'll see when you're strolling through the 100-acre UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden, a treasure to students, faculty, staff and visitors.

Ready? Set? Go? The search party is almost ready to start. If you're lucky, you'll net the prize before Art Shapiro does.

You've seen them. You've seen them hop. They're aptly named. Leafhoppers are tiny insects (family Cicadellidae) that suck nutrients from plants.

Merry Christmas has always been merry, but it's better with butterflies! Isn't everything better with butterflies? Last year, in our small-scale monarch rearing project here in Vacaville, Calif., we saw one monarch eclose on Saturday, Dec. 24, one on Sunday, Dec. 25, and one on Tuesday, Dec. 27.