Bug Squad

Entomologists don't always dress as predators or prey at their Halloween parties. Sure, they're known for donning butterfly, bee, and black widow spider costumes. But sometimes they opt to characterize a scarecrow, a rag doll, a police officer, a pirate, Bernie Sanders and a hot dog.

Have you ever hit a piata? Hit it and smashed it to smithereens? It was probably a Fiesta-ish piata--maybe a colorful unicorn, donkey, or pony, right? Bet it wasn't a fly. And bet it wasn't a fly from the genus Acrocera and family Acroceridae.

Migrating monarchs are fluttering daily into our yard in Vacaville, Calif., one by one, two by two, three by three, and four by four, for a little flight fuel. They're sipping nectar from the Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, and tropical milkweed, Asclepias curassavica.

If you're addicted to insects or insect photography, you'll want to see the international award-winning images on the Insect Salon website. Each year the Peoria (Ill.) Camera Club hosts the contest in conjunction with the Entomological Society of America (ESA).

In case you missed it, today was National Pumpkin Day. But it ought to be National Squash Bee Day, because the squash bee (my favorite species is Peponapis pruinosa) is an important pollinator of squash and pumpkins. A little bit about the squash bees: Squash bees are specialists; not generalists.