Bug Squad

It's not a question of whether katydid did or didn't. She did. In answer to what-are-we-going-to-see-next-in-insect-sightings-today-in-our-weird-climate-changing patterns, a katydid appeared on our yellow rose bush on Nov. 21 in Vacaville, Calif. And stayed for several days.

We first saw her at 10 a.m. on Oct. 27, 2017. She was eating. That's what monarch caterpillars do best. They eat. A lot. "Where have you been?" I asked. "Where have you been hiding? Your siblings have long gone.

Set a plate for one and you might get three more diners. Such was the case recently in a Sonoma garden when a patch Iceland poppy (Papaver nudicaule) drew a posse of hungry honey bees, all elbowing up to the plate. Iceland poppy is irresistible. Ironically, you won't find Iceland poppy in Iceland.

It's Thanksgiving Day and time to give thanks for NOT what we WANT, but what we HAVE. And, not for what we OWN, but what we CANNOT. That includes the yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii. On the morning of Nov.

American biologist, researcher, theorist, naturalist and author E.O. Wilson once said: "(We have) reason to cherish each species in turn as a world unto itself, worthy of lifetimes of study." That includes parasitoids. "Parasitoid Palooza!" That was the theme of the open house hosted Saturday, Nov.