Bed bugs are not the kind of souvenirs you really want to bring back.  Check out your hotel at:

http://www.bedbugregistry.com/

I am not an entomologist - I always make that clear because a lot of people have that expectation when they find out I work in IPM. Granted, I did take a considerable number of entomology classes and I have put in long hours in field work so it's not like I am completely oblivious.  But I digress.  

While I would rather be showing you is  a cool new tool to control weeds, I recently received an email from a person in San Clemente who said there were thousands of red and black insects on twigs and the sidewalk near her home.  She sent me a photo and I knew exactly what she had:Lodosiana (=Scantius) aegyptius
This insect is a new one only recently found in North America and by luck I had seen an article about it in the Orange County Register
http://greenoc.freedomblogging.com/2009/08/03/red-bug-makes-first-american-appearance-in-oc/11179/
So far there are no reports of widespread damage due to feeding on plants. They do not hurt humans.
Note the 2 black dots on either side of the body.

Then I happened to read about another similar looking insect recently found called the bagrada bug.  See http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/PPD/PDF/Bagrada_hilaris.pdf or http://cisr.ucr.edu/bagrada_bug.html for details.  This one has been reported to cause plant damage.  
Photo by Gevork Arakelian, Senior Biologist, Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner/Weights & Measures Department.

The adults don't look too similar but the nymphs could be confusing.  

If you see the spotted one, let pjbryant@uci.edu know. He is looking at the genetics of the insect.  If you see the Bagrada bug in counties other than LA, Orange, Imperial, or San Diego, let your local Agricultural Commissioner know.

This summer I have been watching the green fruit beetles dive bomb my own garden.  Last month I found one in the soil with just its head in the soil and its rear end sticking up. I knew it was going to (or  had) laid some eggs so I dug around and was amazed to find hundreds of grubs of various sizes already developing. 

This is about 1 square foot.


See http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/PESTS/grfruitbeetle.htmlfor more information about the green fruit beetle.

I collected a bunch and put them in a tray with some soil. Watch what happens when I shake the tray and about 7 seconds later.

Runoff may carry pesticides and other toxics from around homes into waterways. Harvesting rainwater from the roof will help reduce the amount of water reaching the ground and you can use this water for your garden whenever you want (not just Tuesdays and Thursdays). While it may not be on your mind right now, we do get a few bigs rains each year. This is free installation and materials. If I lived in LA County, I would sure take advantage of it!

If you are a landscaper or gardener and have a customer that could benefit from this, you should encourage them to do so.

See http://larainwaterharvesting.org/ for more information and application form.  As of today (9/21/09) there are about 170 slots open.