Bug Squad

Why would anyone want to study walking sticks (stick insects)? Well, why wouldn't anyone NOT want to? That's the question we ought to ask. Enter doctoral candidate Matan Shelomi of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.

While other parts of the country are buried in snow, California's Central Valley is just finishing up its almond pollination season.

If there's anything better than a ladybug eating an aphid, it's a ladybug devouring dozens of aphids. Get 'em! Ladybugs--actually, they're "lady beetles"--are garden heroes. And that's the theme of the Bohart Museum of Entomology's open house on Sunday, March 2 from 1 to 4 p.m.

We're accustomed to seeing honey bees pollinating the almonds. But carpenter bees do, too. We spotted a female Valley carpenter bee, Xylocopa varipuncta, foraging in an almond tree on Feb. 24 in a field adjacent to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr.

Talk about good news. Honey bees will definitely benefit from the U.S.