Bug Squad

The bumble bee population is declining and some species are teetering on the brink of extinction.

When you visit the Peter J. Shields Oak Grove in the UC Davis Arboretum, you'll see one of the most diverse mature oak collections in the United States.

Almond pollination season is approaching, and with it, come concerns. "A concern each year...is how many honey bee visitation hours occurred during bloom," writes Extension Apiculturist Eric Mussen in his newly published edition of from the UC Apiaries.

The noonhour seminars sponsored every Wednesday through March 10 by the Department of Entomology, University of California, Davis, are drawing widespread interest. And delightedly so. Many faculty, students and staff make it a point to attend the 12:10 to 1 p.m.

Talk about singing the blues. Specifically, the noted "Blue King" (Aster amellus), a member of the sunflower family, Asteraceae. This is one flower that deserves its own chorus. At the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr.