- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Of course!
Marielle Simone Hansel Friedman, a second-year doctoral student in the lab of urban landscape entomologist Emily Meineke, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, got swept in the Barbie movie craze last year--like so many others--so this year she decided to do something special for the Entomology Graduate Student Association (EGSA) T-shirt booth at the 110th annual UC Davis Picnic Day.
She designed a pink Barbie "Bugbie" t-shirt illustrated with a rosy maple moth, Dryocampa rubicunda.
EGSA not only sold them in its booth, but the students staffing the various insect, nematode and arachnid booths at Briggs Hall wore them as they greeted visitors and talked about their projects.
They also wore them at the popular cockroach races ("Run, roach, run!) and at the maggot art tables.
Briggs Hall got pinked! Indeed, it was like seeing a flock of flamingos.
And the crowd learned that moths can be pink. Rosy pink.
"I love moths," Marielle said, "and had seen photos of rosy maple moths before, and thought it would be the perfect bug to put in the Bugbie promo because of its bright pink and yellow markings and adorable face.”
ESGA sold a total of 482 shirts that day, with 60 of them Bugbie shirts, "putting it in our top three best sellers of the day!” Marielle commented.
She also designed the monarch butterfly, swallowtail butterfly, milkweed bug, and Bugbie stickers sold at Picnic Day.
Her doctoral work at UC Davis involves "exploring the role of urbanization in herbivory of non-native plants within the context of our changing climate."
Marielle recently co-authored a research article, "Biology of Immature Stages and Host Range Characteristics of Sudauleutes bosqi (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), a Candidate Biological Control Agent of Exotic Ludwigia spp. in the USA," published in October 2022 in the Florida Entomologist. (See https://tinyurl.com/8csactwb)
Meanwhile, “Bugbie” is being sold on the EGSA website for $25 each at https://ucdavisentgrad.square.site/.
One of EGSA's all-time best sellers is The Beetles, mimicking the Beatles' Abbey Road image. The inventory also includes bees, cicadas, nematodes, a whip scorpion and a praying mantis.
They all pale in comparison to the hot pink Barbie "Bugbie" T-shirt.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Don't head over to the Bohart Museum of Entomology in the Academic Surge Building on Crocker Lane on Saturday, April 20 during the 110th annual UC Davis Picnic Day.
Why?
It will be closed.
The Bohart Museum, part of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology (ENT), will be staffing a pop-up tent from noon to 4 p.m. in front of Briggs Hall, home of the department.
That means all the "bug" displays at the 2024 UC Picnic Day will be at one place: Briggs Hall. The Bohart has provided a QR code and the location:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/DLBmhLuEnP1rWjn67.
Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator, says the Bohart Museum is planning four areas of interest:
- The "Oh, my drawers," (California arachnids and wing diversity showcasing cicadas and California dogface butterflies.
- Petting zoo of live insects (thorny sticks), which attendees can hold and photograph. Also shown will be a cicada nymph (from retired Bohart senior museum scientist Steve Heydon) and horntail caterpillars from UC Davis biology lab manager and UC Davis alumna Ivana Li.
- A Bohart poster giveaway--California dogface butterflies.
- A dogface butterfly face banner where attendees can pose for photos
The California dogface butterfly, Zerene eurydice, is California's state insect, as authorized by the State Legislature in 1972. The butterfly is found only in California, from the foothills of the Sierra Nevada to the Coast Ranges and from Sonoma south to San Diego. Its most prevalent habitat is in Auburn at the Placer Land Trust's private conservation site (which the public can see through specially guided tours). Why is it there? Because its larval host plant, false indigo (Amorpha californica) thrives there.
The male, which sports a yellow silhouette of a dog's head on its wings, is known as "the flying pansy." The female is mostly solid yellow except for a single black spot on its upper wings.
Kareofelas serves as a docent or volunteer tour guide for the Placer Land Trust's dogface butterfly site. He has reared--and photographed--a dogface butterfly from egg to adult. And he's also grown false indigo.
The posters to be given away Saturday--until gone--are the work of Kareofelas and Keller and depict the male and female butterfly.
Theme of the Bohart Museum's Picnic Day display is "Bonding with the Bohart," in reference to Professor Jason Bond, who succeeded UC Davis distinguished professor emerita Lynn Kimsey as director on Feb. 1. Kimsey served 34 years as the director. Although officially retired from the university, she continues to serve as a researcher, and as the executive director of the Bohart Museum Society and editor of the newsletter. Bond is the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair of the Department of Entomology and Nematology, and the associate dean, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. He also serves as president-elect of the American Arachnological Society.
In addition to the Bohart Museum displays, the entomological events at Briggs Hall will include:
Bug Doctor
Briggs Hall Entryway
Graduate students will answer questions about insects. What's that bug? Attendees are encouraged to bring an insect or photo for identification.
Cockroach Races
Front of Briggs Hall
American cockroaches, Periplaneta americana, from Bob Kimsey's forensic lab, race on a specially made track, while roach fans cheer for their favorites. (Sometimes the athletes are named for faculty, friends or bystanders.
Medical Entomology
122 Briggs Hall
Carla-Cristina "CC" Melo Edwards of the Geoffrey Attardo lab is coordinating the medical entomology display. Her research focuses on investigating the physiological mechanisms underlying pyrethroid resistance in Aedes aegypti (the yellow fever mosquito).
Diversity of Arachnids
122 Briggs Hall
Doctoral student Emma Jochim of the Jason Bond lab is coordinating an exhibit she created last year to display the diversity of arachnids, such as vinegaroons, whip spiders, tarantulas, and scorpions. "We'll have live animals and fact sheets that will give a general overview of their diversity, behavior, and habitat," Jochim said. "I'll also bring some curated specimens to show what goes into creating a scientific collection and talk about why collections are important for understanding biodiversity. "
Maggot Art
Briggs Courtyard
Artists--children and adults alike--create maggot art by dipping a live maggot into water-based, non-toxic paint. It's suitable for framing (or at least a spot on the refrigerator door). This activity will close at 3.
Dr. Death
122 Briggs Hall
Forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey will display and discuss his work.
Entomology at UC Davis
122 Briggs Hall
Displays of insects, including bees, ants and more. Graduate students, faculty and emeriti will staff the tables.
Fly-Tying
Briggs Hall courtyard
Fly Fishers of Davis will show attendees how to tie a fly. The recipients take home the flies.
Insect-Themed T-Shirt Sales
Briggs Hall entryway
Members of the Entomology Graduate Student Association (EGSA), led by president Mia Lippey, will be selling their popular insect-themed t-shirts, including The Beetles.
Mosquito Control Booth
Entrance to Briggs (below front steps)
Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District will be providing information on mosquitoes, answering questions, and offering give-a-ways.
UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management (UC IPM)
Briggs Hall Courtyard
“We plan to have many of our usual materials on display and will be giving out the live lady beetles (aka ladybugs) again,” said urban and community IPM educator Lauren Fordyce. “We purchase them from a local garden center. In addition to that, we plan to have a prize wheel that adults and kids can spin, answer a question, and win a prize if they answer correctly. We may also have temporary insect tattoos to give away.”
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology will not only celebrate insect and nematode diversity at Briggs Hall during the 110th annual UC Davis Picnic Day on Saturday, April 20, but also "The Diversity of Arachnids."
Doctoral student Emma "Em" Jochim of the Jason Bond lab is coordinating an exhibit she created last year to display the diversity of arachnids, such as vinegaroons, whip spiders, tarantulas, and scorpions.
"We'll have live animals and fact sheets that will give a general overview of their diversity, behavior, and habitat," Jochim points out. "I'll also bring some curated specimens to show what goes into creating a scientific collection and talk about why collections are important for understanding biodiversity."
Emma holds a bachelor's degree in biology, with a minor in geology and chemistry, from Millsaps College, Jackson, Miss., where she graduated summa cum laude. Her honors thesis: "Species Delimitation of Vaejovis Scorpions from the Santa Catalina Mountains Using Genetic, Morphological, and Geographical Data." While a student at Millsaps College, her outreach activities including sharing her knowledge of tarantulas, scorpions and vinegaroons at the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science.
At UC Davis, her advisor is Professor Jason Bond, the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair of the Department of Entomology and Nematology; the director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology; and associate dean, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. He's also the president-elect of the American Arachnological Society.
What can you see at Briggs Hall during UC Davis Picnic Day? Cockroach races, maggot art, walking sticks, flies, ants, bees, nematodes, beetles, butterflies, mosquitoes and more. The UC Davis Entomology Graduate Student Association will be selling insect-themed T-shirts. (See news story)
Most Briggs Hall events are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., announced the co-chairs, doctoral student Grace Horne and forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey. This year the Bohart Museum of Entomology, part of the Department of Entomology and Nematology, will staff a pop-up tent in front of Briggs from noon to 4 p.m. The theme: "Bonding with the Bohart." Visitors can hold walking sticks and Madagascar hissing cockroaches from the Bohart's live petting zoo, and see insect specimens, including butterflies, bees, beetles and dragonflies. (The Academic Surge Building, home of the Bohart Museum, will be closed on Picnic Day).
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Remember when San Francisco 49'ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk credited his spectacular 51-yard catch in the 2024 NFC championship game with the Detroit Lions to a ladybug (note that entomologists correctly call it a "lady beetle") landing on his shoe before the game?
Well, those attending the 110th annual UC Davis Picnic Day activities on Saturday, April 20 at Briggs Hall--home of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology--can also net some luck.
Children are encouraged to take home a couple of the beetles at the UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program (UC IPM) booth in the courtyard of Briggs. (Adults can do so, too. Maybe they'll name their beetles "Brandon" and "Aiyuk.")
The ladybug is actually a beetle (Coleoptera), not a bug (Hemiptera). It's associated with good luck because it eats the aphids that try to destroy our crops. It can eat as many as 5000 aphids in its lifetime, scientists estimate.
"These beetles have become a cultural icon of sorts because of their appearance and their beneficial habits," writes UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, former director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, in her insect fact sheet on lady beetles. "Both adults and larvae feed on aphids and other small, soft-bodied insects...They are ferocious predators on small insects." (See what the UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program says about lady beetles.)
Ever seen a close-up shot of a lady beetle eating an aphid? The predator and the prey...
Ever seen a cellar spider snaring and eating a lady beetle? The predator and the predator...one becomes prey.
Ordinarily, the lady beetle's bright red coloration serves as a "warning" to predators. Plus, lady beetles are known to ooze a foul-tasting chemical that tastes so bad that predators leave them alone. This lady beetle engaged in "reflex bleeding," exuding an alkaloid toxin (which did not deter the predator).
Lady beetles will be just a few of the bugs at Briggs Hall during UC Davis Picnic Day. You'll also see cockroach races, maggot art, and displays featuring ants, bees, walking sticks, mosquitoes, nematodes, butterflies, spiders, whip scorpions, and more. Check out "bug" activities at Briggs Hall here. UC Davis Picnic Day is free and family friendly.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
(Note: The main UC Davis Department of Entomology news page is at https://entomology.ucdavis.edu.)
What's a picnic without bugs!
The UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology is gearing up for the 110th annual UC Davis Picnic Day, set April 20.
This year, all of the entomology exhibits, including those at the Bohart Museum of Entomology, will be at Briggs Hall. (The Bohart Museum headquarters in the Academic Surge Building will be closed on Picnic Day.)
Picnic Day at Briggs Hall is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Some of the activities will closer earlier.
The list of events and activities in and around Briggs Hall will include:
Bug Doctor
Briggs Hall Entryway
Graduate students will answer questions about insects. What's that bug? Attendees are encouraged to bring an insect or photo for identification.
Cockroach Races
Front of Briggs Hall
American cockroaches, Periplaneta americana, from Bob Kimsey's forensic lab, race on a specially made track, while roach fans cheer for their favorites. (Sometimes the athletes are named for faculty, friends or bystanders.)
Medical Entomology
122 Briggs Hall
Carla-Cristina "CC" Melo Edwards of the Geoffrey Attardo lab is coordinating the medical entomology display. Her research focuses on investigating the physiological mechanisms underlying pyrethroid resistance in Aedes aegypti (the yellow fever mosquito).
Diversity of Arachnids
122 Briggs Hall
Doctoral student Emma Jochim of the Jason Bond lab is coordinating an exhibit she created last year to display the diversity of arachnids, such as vinegaroons, whip spiders, tarantulas, and scorpions. "We'll have live animals and fact sheets that will give a general overview of their diversity, behavior, and habitat," Jochim said. "I'll also bring some curated specimens to show what goes into creating a scientific collection and talk about why collections are important for understanding biodiversity. "
Maggot Art
Briggs Courtyard
Artists--children and adults alike--create maggot art by dipping a live maggot into water-based, non-toxic paint. It's suitable for framing (or at least a spot on the refrigerator door). This event will close at 3 p.m. this year (last year it was at 5 p.m.)
Dr. Death
122 Briggs Hall
Forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey will display and discuss his work in his "Dr. Death" booth. Last year Kimsey pin-mounted and identified flies from various cases and research efforts, and displayed studies on the sequence of development of individual maggots, calling attention to the development and sequence of communities of insect maggots. "By these means, approximations about how long a person has been dead can be made," he told the crowd.
Entomology at UC Davis
122 Briggs Hall
Displays of insects, including bees, ants and more. Graduate students, faculty and emeriti will staff the tables.
Bohart Museum of Entomology
Front of Briggs Hall
A pop-up tent, staffed by the Bohart Museum, will include stick insects (walking sticks) and Madagascar hissing cockroaches. "We are excited to be part of the bigger department's offerings," said Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator. Give-aways are also planned.
Fly-Tying
Briggs Hall courtyard
Fly Fishers of Davis will show attendees how to tie a fly. The recipients take home the flies.
Insect-Themed T-Shirt Sales
Briggs Hall entryway
Members of the Entomology Graduate Student Association (EGSA), led by president Mia Lippey, will be selling their popular insect-themed t-shirts, including The Beetles. The T-shirt, EGSA's all-time best seller, is a take-off of the cover of The Beetles' Abbey Road alum. However, instead of the Beatles crossing the road in a single file, four beetles (family names Phengogidae, Curculionidae, Cerambycidae and Scarabaeidae) do so.
Mosquito Control Booth
Entrance to Briggs (below front steps)
Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District will be providing information on mosquitoes, answering questions, and handing out give-a-ways, including mosquito repellent.
UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management (UC IPM)
Briggs Hall Courtyard
“We plan to have many of our usual materials on display and will be giving out the live lady beetles (aka ladybugs) again,” said urban and community IPM educator Lauren Fordyce. “We purchase them from a local garden center. In addition to that, we plan to have a prize wheel that adults and kids can spin, answer a question, and win a prize if they answer correctly. We may also have temporary insect tattoos to give away.”
Ranked Third in the Country. The UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology is ranked third among “The Best Entomology Colleges in the United States for 2024" by universities.com. The department includes 24 active and 19 retired faculty; 28 graduate students (five in the master's degree program and 23 in the doctoral degree program); 47 undergraduate entomology majors (based on the Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services (OASIS) Student Reports); and a staff comprised of 27 academics (non-faculty), 24 career, and 56 student assistants. Professor and chair of the department is molecular geneticist and physiologist Joanna Chiu.