Bug Squad

Its good to see so many childrens books being published about bees. One of the latest ones is Buzz About Bees (Fitzhenry & Whiteside) by former elementary school teacher Kari-Lynn Winters, who asked forand receivedone of my photos of beekeeper Brian Fishback of Wilton wearing a bee beard.

Aah, is there anything more beautiful than pipevine swallowtails nectaring on the rosy pink blossoms of Jupiter's Beard?

Take one honey bee and one Japanese anemone. Then add one jumping spider. The results don't always turn out so well. But today in the East Asian Collection Garden of the UC Davis Arboretum, everything turned out well--for the honey bee.

What Emmet Brady describes as "the wonderful world of pollination" will come to life on Wednesday, Aug. 21. Brady, a cultural entomologist, hosts the Insect News Network on KDRT 97.4 FM Radio, Davis, and every year he hosts a "Bee-a-Thon" to spotlight honey bees.

Saturday, Aug. 17 is National Honey Bee Day and it's time for a tribute, a salute and a cheer, all combined into one: Go, bees! We're glad to see concerned citizens, organizations and businesses contributing to bee research at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr.