- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
"His references all described him as a full-time creative scientist, a full-time wonderful teacher, and that he tends to carry the administrative load of the department on his shoulders," related UC Davis distinguished professor Bruce Hammock of the Department of Entomology and Nematology, a longtime friend and colleague. "That's borne out by his stellar record at UC Davis. Walter is a wonderful researcher and innovative teacher who is making UC Davis and the world of entomology a better place."
Both Hammock and Leal are internationally celebrated scientists that make UC Davis proud. Among their many honors: members of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Inventors, and fellows of the Entomological Society of America.
The Energizer Bunny was at full industrial strength at the 27th International Congress of Entomology (ICE2024), a weeklong conference in Kyoto, Japan that drew more than 4000 researchers from 82 countries. This year's theme: “New Discoveries Through Consilience."
Leal, a UC Davis distinguished professor of biochemistry in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, and a former professor and chair of the Department of Entomology and Nematology, chaired the ICE Council for International Congresses of Entomology, which decides the next venue (it's set for July 17-21, 2028 in Capetown, Africa). ICE meets every four years.
And as the chair, Leal delivered the welcoming remarks, declaring the congress open. He also presented three seminars--his own, and two others for colleagues unable to attend. In addition, Leal served as an entomology ambassador and video journalist, sharing news on social media and keeping conference attendees and the outside world up-to-date and informed.
Leal, a native of Brazil who speaks Portuguese, Japanese and English, is no stranger to ICE or to Japan. He and Alvin Simmons, a research entomologist with USDA-ARS, Charleston, S.C., co-chaired ICE2016, held in Orlando, Fla. It drew a record 6600 delegates from 101 countries.
Before joining the UC Davis faculty in 2000, Leal studied and worked in Japan. He received his master's degree in agricultural chemistry from Mie University and his doctorate in applied biochemistry from the University of Tsukuba, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in entomology (1991) at the National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science. He then served six years as the head of the Laboratory of Chemical Prospecting, becoming the first foreigner to be granted tenure there.
Research Presentation. At ICE2024, Leal delivered his research presentation on “The Circa-bi-dian Clock of the Large Black Chafer (Holotrichia parallela) Manifests in the Beetle's Sex Pheromone Reception,” at a chemical ecology symposium, co-chaired by three former Leal lab members: Zainulabeuddin Syed, now at the University of Kentucky; Wei Xu, Murdoch University, Australia; and Yuko Ishida, Research Institute of Luminous Organisms, Hachijojima.
Entomology Ambassador. As an entomology ambassador at ICE2024, Leal encouraged students and early-career entomologists. As a journalist he shared news of the event, filming some 50 videos, many of which he posted on X (formerly known as Twitter). His X account is https://x.com/wsleal2014.
Wigglesworth Memorial Award Lecture. When Leal learned that colleague May Berenbaum, professor and head of Department of Entomology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, would be unable to attend to present her Wigglesworth Memorial Award Lecture, he subbed in, delivering a lecture on “Insect Chemical Communication: Research Notes from Tsukuba and Davis.” Coincidentally, Leal's colleagues had nominated him for the Wigglesworth Award, and Berenbaum had provided a letter of support.
Third Presentation. When Leal learned that his collaborator, Haroldo Xavier Linhares Volpe of the Department of Research and Development, Fund for Citrus Protection (Fundecitrus), Araraquara, São Paulo, Brazil, had to cancel at the last minute, he stepped forward and presented the seminar, "Effect of the Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus Infection on the Asian Citrus Psyllid Response to a Putative Sex Pheromone."
"Your Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince and Crown Princess Akishino, Distinguished Guests, Presidents of Entomological Societies, and Entomologists from All Corners of the Planet," he began. "Welcome to The Resilient and Consilient International Congress of Entomology. (Kyoto he Youkoso, in Japanese)
"One hundred fourteen years and 24 days have passed since our first International Congress of Entomology (ICE), which was held in Brussels in Belgium. The 16th Congress in Kyoto in 1980 was the first to be held in Asia and it has taken 44 years and 19 days to return to Kyoto. ICE is young compared to the city of Kyoto – one of the oldest municipalities in Japan. Like Kyoto, we keep our traditions, but also, like Kyoto, we keep pace with an ever-modernizing world.
"Indeed, the science of entomology has exploded in scope and depth over the past 114 years. This week, you will be presenting or hearing about research and new developments in all frontiers of entomology, some of which may have been considered inconceivable at our last congress, held in Helsinki, let alone the first International Congress in Belgium.
"As you may know, entomology is the most welcome field of all scientific endeavors. We proudly welcome amateur and professional entomologists, field entomologists and those carrying out fundamental research (which may not be applicable within a foreseeable future), early career scholars and world-renowned entomologists, and—of course—students—be they graduate, undergraduate, high school, or elementary school students. Throughout its lifetime the International Congresses of entomology have been exercising diversity and inclusion, something we are all very proud of.
"Entomology welcomed me as a chemical ecologist/biochemist working on insect science. Entomology made me a Fellow and Honorary Fellow of some of the most prestigious entomological societies, a Gakkaisho recipient, and even President of the Council of the International Congresses of Entomology. If you practice entomology, you are an entomologist, and be proud of that label – because we are the most all-inclusive profession.
"I sincerely hope that by the end of this week, you'll conclude that this was the best congress you have ever attended. Let the science begin!"
Helping New Faculty Members. Hammock also points out that Leal is always welcoming and encouraging new faculty members. Said assistant professor Sascha Ct Nicklisch of the Department of Environmental Toxicology: "I think that Walter is an indispensable advocate and role model for many junior and mid-career faculty. He actively voices the concerns that many young faculty have or think, but who are too afraid to speak up while still being nontenured and in a volatile, vulnerable position. A perfect example is Walter's fight for fair compensation: I think he realizes that it is not just about numbers. For many, if not all, of the faculty working in academia, it is about showing younger colleagues that their contributions to research, teaching, and faculty diversity are valued and that their future here at UC Davis matters."
Now Walter Leal has set his sights on ICE2028. “We hope that having the next International Congress of Entomology in Cape Town," he said, "will raise the profile of entomologists from the entire African continent.”
You'll see the Energizer Bunny, aka Walter Leal, at full industrial strength. Unlike the Energizer battery mascot, though, Leal won't be beating a drum while wearing a pink outfit with dark sunglasses, and sporting blue-and-black striped flip-flops.
He's the real deal, as Hammock will tell you. "Never runs down."
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's the birthday anniversary of noted entomologist Richard "Doc" Bohart (1913-2007), founder of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, University of California, Davis.
So when the Bohart Museum hosts a public open house (theme:"Museum ABCs: Arthropods, Bohart and Collecting") from 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 28, plans also call for a tribute to him and his work.
"Doc" Bohart founded the insect museum in 1946 and served as its first director; compiled 32 years on the entomology faculty; and became an internationally recognized entomologist and author.
Born Sept. 28, 2013 in Palo Alto, Richard began collecting butterflies at age 7. "He and his brother George 'Ned' Bohart collected butterflies for a local collector to earn pocket money," according to UC Davis distinguished professor emerita Lynn Kimsey, who directed the Bohart Museum for 34 years until her retirement on Feb. 1, 2024.
Bohart attended UC Berkeley, receiving three degrees in entomology culminating in his doctorate in 1938. He joined the UC Davis faculty in 1946 and chaired the Department of Entomology from 1956 to 1965. He taught general entomology, medical entomology, systematics, and agricultural entomology.
According to the Academic Senate's memorial, Bohart "contributed substantially to the world literature of the insect Order Hymenoptera, which included two landmark books, Sphecid Wasps of the World (with A. S. Menke), and The Chrysidid Wasps of the World (with L.S. Kimsey), as well as 230 journal articles and four other books on wasps and mosquitoes, including the second and third editions of The Mosquitoes of California (the second with Stanley B. Freeborn and the third with Robert K. Washino). During his career, he described more than 200 new species and genera of insects."
Today the Bohart Museum is the home of a global collection of eight million insects; a live petting zoo (including Madagascar hissing cockroaches, stick insects and tarantulas); and an insect-themed gift shop, stocked with T-shirts, hoodies, jewelry, books, posters, and collecting equipment. The new director, only the third since 1946, is Professor Jason Bond, the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair in Insect Systematics, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, and associate dean of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
"His teaching and collecting activities resulted in the development of one of the finest collections of stinging wasps in the world in the Bohart Museum of Entomology," Kimsey said. "A great deal of this material was obtained through his collecting and that of his students. During his tenure, the museum collection grew from 500 specimens to 7 million, a span of some 60 years. Chancellor James Meyer dedicated the entomology museum in his name in 1983. The R. M. Bohart Museum moved into a new building in 1994 and was dedicated by Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef."
Open House. The open house, free and family friendly, will include "an overview of terrestrial arthropods which encompasses everything from insects, arachnids, millipedes, isopods and centipedes," said Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordination. "We will also showcase some of the trapping/catching methods we use, for example, nets, lights, pitfall traps and malaise traps."
Pinning, spreading and curation demonstrations are planned "so people know how to take care of and preserve a dead arthropod for research or for a personal collection," Yang said. "People sometimes find a dead dragonfly or a butterfly on the ground and we often get asked how they can preserve it."
"We also get asked a lot of questions about our own collection and why the specimens don't decay," she added. "We will highlight the different curation techniques from pinning, point mounting, preserving in alcohol and mounting on slides."
Entomologist Jeff Smith, curator of the Lepidoptera collection, which encompasses some 750,000 specimens, will demonstrate and discuss the various steps of relaxing, pinning, spreading, and labeling moths and butterflies.
A Bohart volunteer since 1998, Smith has spread the wings of some 180,000 moths and butterflies, typically 6,000 or more each year for the past 30-plus years. He has crafted and donated some 2,475 wooden specimen drawers, including 110 so far this year. He also has donated some 100,000 specimens (primarily butterflies, moths but a few other insects, including beetles) to the Bohart Museum.
- 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.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Born in Tonbridge, England, but a resident of Canada since 1945, Jeremy received his bachelor's degree in zoology, with honors, from the University of Western Ontario in 1969, and his doctorate in entomology and ecology from North Carolina State University in 1972. He served as a professor at Western Ontario from 2004 until his death.
"Jeremy died as he lived, tenacious and determined to the last--qualities that served him well as he blazed a trail through life," according to his obituary in Legacy.com. "He was recognised internationally as an eminent research scientist, publishing hundreds of papers, holding many positions of distinction and receiving countless accolades and awards. These include, among many others, President of the Royal Society of Canada, the Humboldt Research Fellowship in Germany, and the Order of Canada for his services to education. He was a passionate and enthusiastic educator his whole life, an ambassador equally at ease with everyone from VIPs to children."
"He received several national awards for his outreach activities, often saying the publication that he was most proud of was What is an Insect?, a children's book he co-wrote with Let's Talk Science which has been translated into five languages, and is used as a teaching aid in schools across Canada."
The professor, fondly nicknamed "The Bug Man," treasured his 500 (plus) insect-themed T-shirts, his favorite attire. One of them was "The Beetles," the all-time best seller designed and sold by the UC Davis Entomology Graduate Student Association. Mimicking The Beatles (George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and John Lennon) crossing Abbey Road in a single file, the t-shirt depicts four beetles sauntering across the road. Beneath each beetle image is the family name: Phengogidae, Curculionidae, Cerambycidae and Scarabaeidae. Think glowworm beetles, snout beetles, long-horned beetles and scarab beetles.
"If you look closely," we wrote in a Bug Squad blog posted Dec. 4, 2023, "these UC Davis beetles are all wearing clothes--maybe designer clothes designed just for them? Three are barefoot, and one, the long-horned beetle, is wearing shoes. EGSA records don't indicate who designed The Beetles, but it's a keeper. It never fails to draw smiles. (EGSA sells this t-shirt and others at https://ucdavisentgrad.square.site.)
But back to Jeremy O'Neil and his love of insect-themed T-shirts. On July 26, his friend and colleague, UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal, recently elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences, posted an image on X (formerly Twitter) of McNeil wearing his UC Davis Beetles T-shirt. "Jeremy McNeil (Nov. 20, 1944 – July 18, 2024) had 500+ entomology-themed T-shirts, but this is--without a doubt--the number one! I am slightly biased because I like beetles in the family Scarabaeidae, not because I'm a @ucdavis faculty of course."
According to Legacy.com, all of McNeil's t-shirts will be "catalogued and sold to raise money for charity."
Jeremy Nichol McNeil would have loved that--but maybe not quite as much as he loved entomology and inspiring others to learn about insect science.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
In images, text, and analogies.
“Just like in a honey bee colony, it takes a team to win an award," he said, and graciously proceeded to thank all those who made it possible. Family, friends, students, postdoctoral fellows, colleagues, staff and more. Or, as he said "work performed by the cast of thousands deserve the distinguished research award."
Leal, former professor and chair of the Department of Entomology (now the Department of Entomology and Nematology) joined the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology faculty in 2013. He is first UC Davis faculty member to win Academic Senate's trifecta of coveted awards: Distinguished Teaching Award for Undergraduate Teaching (2020), Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award (2022) and now, the Faculty Distinguished Research Award.
A week before the seminar, Leal was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
“Dr. Leal is an internationally recognized entomologist and a world leader in his field for his groundbreaking and transformative research in insect olfaction and chemical ecology,” said UC Davis distinguished professor Bruce Hammock, who nominated Leal for the Faculty Distinguished Research Award.
Leal credits Hammock, a 25-year friend and colleague, as instrumental in “luring” him from his tenured position in the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, Japan, to the Department of Entomology (now the Department of Entomology and Nematology) in 2000. A native of Brazil, Leal received his Ph.D. in applied biochemistry from the University of Tsukuba, Japan, with subsequent postdoctoral training in entomology and chemical ecology at the National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science and Cornell University, respectively.
In his letter of nomination, Hammock pointed out "I especially applaud him for elucidating the mode of action of the insect repellent DEET, developed in 1946 and known as ‘the gold standard of repellents.' Its mode of action remained an enigma for six decades until Walter's discovery. In researching the neurons in mosquito antennae sensitive to DEET, he isolated the first DEET-sensitive odorant receptor, paving the way for the development of better repellents.”
Leal's analogy of bees working together to succeed, just like what occurs in a successful lab, is spot on. The worker bees inside the hive perform specific duties: nurse maids, nannies, royal attendants, builders, architects, foragers, dancers, honey tenders, pollen packers, propolis or "glue" specialists, air conditioning and heating technicians, guards, and undertakers.
As an aside, Leal mentioned that one research project in his lab involved his daughter Helena, honey bees and her shampoo. “Helena always said the bees were bothering her and then when we collected the volatiles from her, we noticed that there was a contaminant, isoamyl acetate,” Leal told the crowd. “To make a long story short, isoamyl acetate is a chemical that elicits a very aggressive behavior. It's called a sting pheromone known from the early 1960s, and we figured out that that chemical was coming from a shampoo that she was using at that time--the so-called Aussie. So, she stopped using that shampoo and there was no problem with the bees anymore.”
Read more about his lecture here and watch his lecture at https://youtu.be/HkfhsYQE5bI.