- (Focus Area) Natural Resources
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Folks are looking forward to the next open house at the Bohart Museum of Entomology at UC Davis.
It's set Saturday, Sept. 28 from 1 to 4 p.m. and the theme is "Museum ABC's: Arthopods, Bohart and Collecting." It's free and family friendly. Parking is also free.
The Bohart Museum, located in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis, hosts open houses throughout the academic year. It's an opportunity to talk one-on-one with the scientists and see the displays.
The Bohart Museum houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens. Plus, it maintains a live petting zoo (including Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks and tarantulas) and an insect-themed gift shop, stocked with T-shirts, hoodies, jewelry, posters, books, collecting equipment and more.
The Bohart scientists kept regular visitors' hours this summer on Tuesdays. Visiting hours are now over for this summer. Also, starting Monday, Sept. 1 and continuing through Sept. 22, the insect museum will be closed to the public. See website. Also see the Bohart video from last year, featuring then director Lynn Kimsey, UC Davis distinguished professor of entomology and now emerita, as of Feb. 1, 2024. She continues her research at the Bohart and also continues as the newsletter editor.
Assuming the reins of director, as of Feb. 1: Professor Jason Bond, the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, and associate dean, Agricultural Sciences, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Meanwhile, mark your calendar for Saturday, Sept. 28. If you're lucky, you may see a monarch flying around on campus on its way to an overwintering site along coastal California. If not, visit the Lepidoptera collection, curated by entomologist Jeff Smith. You'll see lots of monarch specimens.
Smith says the number of moth and butterfly specimens at the Bohart is about 825,454. Of that number, some 618,750 are moth specimens and the rest are butterflies.
For more information, access the website at https://bohart.ucdavis.edu/ or email bmuseum@ucdavis.edu.
![Entomologist Jeff Smith, curator of the Lepidoptera collection at the Bohart Museum of Entomology, with a drawer of monarch specimens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) Entomologist Jeff Smith, curator of the Lepidoptera collection at the Bohart Museum of Entomology, with a drawer of monarch specimens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108509.jpg)
![A closeup of a male monarch on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) A closeup of a male monarch on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108510.jpg)
![A closeup of a female monarch on lavender in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) A closeup of a female monarch on lavender in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108511.jpg)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
A praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, stretches beneath a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville garden.
Ms. Mantis: (Startled to see she is not alone) "Well, hello, there! How are ya? I'm just dropping by to say Hello!"
Photographer: "So, this is a meet-and-greet? And not a meet-and-eat?"
Ms. Mantis: "Exactly. I'm not interested in eating bees or butterflies. Ooh, there goes a honey bee! Ooh, there's a long-horned bee! Omigosh, a butterfly!"
Photographer: "You're just looking?"
Ms. Mantis: "No, just stretching. See, I've closed my spiked forelegs."
Photographer: "Then why did you move beneath the blossom?"
Ms. Mantis: "For the shade. Yes, that's it. For the shade."
Photographer: "Sounds pretty shady to me. Just admit it, you're hungry."
Ms. Mantis: "Well, now that you mention it, I guess I could use a bite to eat. Just a little bite...a little bee...a little butterfly..."
Photographer: "A quick bite?"
Ms. Mantis: "Lightning fast! One-twentieth of a second! Now, if you'll excuse me..."
The camera clicks. The mantis vanishes...along with an unsuspecting bee.
![A praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, stretches beneath a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) A praying mantis, Stagmomantis limbata, stretches beneath a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108479.jpg)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Talk about flower power.
When you walk through the UC Davis Bee Haven, a half-acre garden on Bee Biology Road, west of the central campus, you'll see bees and other pollinators foraging on a pink floribunda rose cultivar, “Nearly Wild." It's flamingo pink, quite fragrant and very buzzworthy, providing both pollen and nectar.
This cultivar is aptly named "Nearly Wild." It has five petals, just like wild roses.
The garden, installed in 2009 and a project of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nemalogy, is located next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility. Director of the haven is apiculturist/researcher Elina Lastro Niño, associate professor of Cooperative Extension, based in the department.
A six-foot long worker bee, the ceramic-mosaic work of Donna Billick of Davis, anchors the garden, as honey bees from the nearby Laidlaw apiary gather nectar and pollen.
But back to the “Nearly Wild” roses.
They remind us so much of the truly wild roses we've seen growing along river banks, roadsides and in fields. Roses (family Rosaceae and genus Rosa) originated some 25 million years ago. Many of today's roses are the result of centuries of breeding.
What's the story behind "Nearly Wild" and what are its characteristics?" The Missouri Botanical Garden website says this is "a floribunda rose ('Dr. W. Van Fleet' x 'Leuchstern') which typically grows 2-3' tall (less frequently to 4') and as wide. It is a dense, shrubby plant which features clusters of mildly fragrant, single, pink roses (to 3" diameter) with center clumps of prominent yellow stamens. Five-petalled flowers are reminiscent of some species roses hence the cultivar name. Flowers bloom continuously from May to frost. Glossy dark green foliage. Introduced by Brownwell in 1941."
The UC Davis Bee Haven is currently being renovated, but you can still visit from dawn to dusk. Admission is free.
![A pink floribunda rose cultivar, A pink floribunda rose cultivar,](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108454.jpg)
![A native bee seeks to join two honey bees in gathering nectar and pollen from a floribunda rose cultivar, A native bee seeks to join two honey bees in gathering nectar and pollen from a floribunda rose cultivar,](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108455.jpg)
![Side view of a honey bee foraging on a Side view of a honey bee foraging on a](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108456.jpg)
![A honey bee foraging on A honey bee foraging on](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108457.jpg)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
And it's double delightful with twins!
Such was the case at the Vacaville Museum Guild's recent Children's Party when two-year-old twins Ford and Wyatt Devine were thumbing through "The Story of the Dogface Butterfly," a children's book written by UC Davis doctoral alumna Fran Keller, a Folsom Lake College professor and a Bohart Museum of Entomology research scientist.
The twins, along with big brother, Buck, 7, were among the youngsters fascinated by the book, which features macro images by Bohart associate Greg Kareofelas and illustrations by Laine Bauer, then a UC Davis student.
It was just one of the many attractions at the annual Children's Party, held Aug. 8 in the museum courtyard.
Not many know that the butterfly's most prevalent habitat is the 40-acre Shutamul Bear River Preserve near Auburn, on a Placer Land Trust conservation site; Kareofelas serves as a docent on the Placer Land Trust tours. (See virtual tour on YouTube). The butterfly is there because its larval host plant, false indigo (Amorpha californica), is there.
Are there dogface butterflies in Vacaville? Yes. The butterfly's breeding grounds include Gates Canyon. (See UC Davis emeritus professor Art Shapiro's website.)
Director of the insect museum is Professor Jason Bond, the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, and associate dean, Agricultural Sciences, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Meanwhile, Bohart scientists are gearing up for their next open house, set for 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 28. The theme is "Museum ABC's: Arthropods, Bohart and Collecting." All open houses are free and family friendly. Parking is also free. For more information, contact bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or access the website at https://bohart.ucdavis.edu.
![A children's book on the California state insect, the dogface butterfly, draws the interest of twins Ford and Wyatt Devine, 2, of Vacaville.The book was displayed at the Vacaville Museum Guild's Children's Party. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) A children's book on the California state insect, the dogface butterfly, draws the interest of twins Ford and Wyatt Devine, 2, of Vacaville.The book was displayed at the Vacaville Museum Guild's Children's Party. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108404.jpg)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
UC Davis distinguished professor emerita Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology for 34 years until her retirement on Feb. 1, 2024, is among the 17 emeriti featured in a newly released video tribute to emeriti, an annual public service project by UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal.
The 17 featured represent about 20 percent of UC Davis faculty who retired in 2023-24.
Kimsey is a recognized authority on insect biodiversity, systematics and biogeography of parasitic wasps, urban entomology, civil forensic entomology, and arthropod-related industrial hygiene. A UC Davis entomology alumna, she received her undergraduate degree in 1975 and her doctorate in 1979.
Kimsey joined the entomology faculty in 1989 and became the Bohart Museum director in 1990. Although officially retired, she continues her research and as executive director of the Bohart Museum Society. She writes and publishes the quarterly newsletter.
In the video, Leal notes that Kimsey "is an entomologist interested in the systematics of stinging wasps, insect biotic diversity, and urban entomology...she provided insect diagnostics for the public and corporations, non-profit organizations, and governmental agencies."
"Her research focused primarily on cuckoo wasps, hornets, and tiphiid wasps, describing more than 30 new genera and 300 new species of wasps. Her fieldwork included biotic surveys of the insect fauna of various desert sand dune systems in California and tropical habitats in Central America and Southeast Asia."
Kimsey served as president of the International Society of Hymenopterists from 2002-2004, and as a member of the board of directors of the Natural Science Collections Alliance in 2000 and 2001. The Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America (PBESA) singled her out for its highest honor, the C. W. Woodworth Award, in 2020. She received the PBESA Systematics, Evolution, and Biodiversity Award in 2014 and was a member of "The Bee Team" that won the PBESA Outstanding Team Award in 2013. The UC Davis Academic Senate honored her with its Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award in 2016 in recognition of her outstanding work. And in 2023, CA&ES selected her as the recipient of its Exceptional Faculty Award. She was honored with a 21-insect net salute in April.
In addition to the faculty highlights, Leal included brief messages by Chancellor Gary May, Provost Mary Croughan, and Suad Joseph, the UC Davis Emeriti Association (UCDEA) president. UCDEA interviews and records emeriti who have made "significant contributions to the development of the university." See Video Records Project.
"I know our emeriti are feeling the energy at UC Davis as we prepare to greet our incoming class of students," said Chancellor May in the video transcript. "I want to extend a welcome to all our emeriti professors and encourage you to remain involved in our vibrant campus activity just as you've been such an important part of our success."
Those featured on the video tribute, in order of appearance:
- Stuart Meyers, professor emeritus, Department of Anatomy, Physiology, and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine
- Peter Mundy, emeritus distinguished professor, Department of Education, and the Department of Psychiatry, College of Letters and Science
- Vaidehi Ramanathan, professor emerita, Department of Linguistics, College of Letters and Science
- Scott Simon, distinguished professor emeritus, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering
- Bruce German, distinguished professor emeritus, Department of Food Science and Technology, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
- Lynn Kimsey, distinguished professor emerita, Department of Entomology and Nematology, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
- Leonard Abbeduto, professor emeritus, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine
- Lynette Hart, professor emerita, Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine
- Frank Sharp, distinguished professor emeritus, Department of Neurology, School of Medicine
- Stephen Wheeler, professor emeritus, Urban Design and Sustainability, Department of Human Ecology, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
- Esther Kim, professor emerita, Eye Center, School of Medicine
- Julia Menard-Warwick, professor emerita, Department of Linguistics, College of Letters and Science
- Mohamed Hafez, professor emeritus, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, College of Engineering
- Geoffrey Schladow, professor emeritus, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering
- Gail Taylor, distinguished professor emerita, Department of Plant Sciences, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
- Paul FitzGerald, distinguished professor emeritus, Department of Cell Biology and Human Anatomy and Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, School of Medicine
- Alan Balch, distinguished professor emeritus, Department of Chemistry, College of Letters and Science
Additionally, Leal spotlighted (1) an emeriti “caught on camera” (Geerat J. Vermeij) heading to work two years after his retirement ("to stress how many members of the Emeriti remain engaged in UC Davis affairs"), and (2) UC Davis faculty member (Alan Balch) who broke the record on the number of years of service to the University of California (56 years, which included 52 at UC Davis).
Leal creates an annual tribute to UC Davis emeriti as a public service to celebrate their accomplishments as they enter a new chapter in their lives. It is a zero-budget, one-person production.
Leal launched his first "Tribute to Our New Emeriti," featuring 24 professors from eight colleges and schools who transitioned to emeriti in 2021-2022. (See news story.) The 2022-23 tribute is here. (See news story)
Leal, a member of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology faculty since 2013, is a former professor and chair of the Department of Entomology. He is the first UC Davis faculty member to win all three of the Academic Senate's most coveted awards: in research, teaching, and public service. Leal received the 2020 Distinguished Teaching Award for Undergraduate Teaching; the 2022 Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award; and the 2024 Distinguished Faculty Research Award.
![UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey is featured in the newest UC Davis video tribute to emeriti, a public service project of UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal. UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey is featured in the newest UC Davis video tribute to emeriti, a public service project of UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal.](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108400.jpg)