Bee ready!

This is the week of the 40th annual Western Apicultural Society's conference, set Sept. 5-8 at the University of California, Davis. The non-profit group, founded at UC Davis to meet the educational needs of small-scale beekeepers primarily throughout the western United States, will meet in the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC) on campus.

It's a conference filled with educational topics, networking, field trips, a silent auction, door prizes and just plain "bee" fun, says honey bee guru and Western Apicultural Society (WAS) co-founder Eric Mussen, Extension apiculturist emeritus, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, who is serving his sixth term as president.

He's been bee-sy. Ditto the delivery services to the third floor of Briggs Hall. Tomorrow the packages will be trucked over to the ARC, and the anticipation continues.

The newest addition to the conference schedule is the "Kids and Bees" program, set from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, Sept. 5 in the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, located on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis campus. The haven is the department's half-acre educational bee garden. "Bee Girl" Sarah Red-Laird of Ashland, Ore., program director of the American Beekeeping Federation's "Kids and Bees" Program and executive director of Bee Girl will be "borrowing" the site  as part of a grant from the American Beekeeping Federation's Foundation for the Preservation of Honey Bees. First-graders from Peregrine School, Davis, have signed up for the interactive educational program involving bees and beekeeping, honey, beeswax and bee habitat.

Said Sarah: “They will watch bees dance, listen to them buzz, taste honey, smell flowers, roll beeswax candles, observe pollination, take flower seeds home to plant, and learn about the important connections between themselves, bees and our food. The students are keenly interested in learning more about bees, in keeping with the school's motto of “SOAR” - Science, Outdoor Education, Arts, and Responsibility.

Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology, and staff research associates Bernardo Niño and Charley Nye of the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr., Honey Bee Research Facility/UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology will staff four of the work stations. 

As for the Bee Girl organization, Sarah describes it as a "nonprofit with a mission to inspire and empower communities to conserve bees, their flowers, and our food system." She serves as the Oregon director of the Western Apicultural Society, a member of the New York Bee Sanctuary Advisory Board, and the regional representative to the Southern Oregon Beekeepers' Association. She is also a "Mountainsmith Brand Ambeesador." (As of Monday afternoon, she was seeking several more volunteers. Those interested can contact her sarah@beegirl.org or 541-708-1127.) See her work on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@sarahBeeGirl). Her hashtag is #loveyourbees.

Sarah says her love of bees began in Southern Oregon, on the deck of her aunt's cabin, at the end of a country road. She received her degree, with honors, in resource conservation from the University of Montana and did research in Jerry Bromenshenk Honey Bee Lab. She presented her beekeeping findings at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research on "How to Keep 100,000 Girlfriends, the Careful Relationship of a Beekeeper and Her Honey Bees." Following her graduation, Sarah returned home in late 2010 and found her niche, combining her love of bees with her education, outreach, research, conservation to form Bee Girl. She formed the non-profit experience to "encourage and support beekeepers and bee lovers." 

Sarah describes her Bee Girl organization as a "nonprofit with a mission to inspire and empower communities to conserve bees, their flowers, and our food system." She serves as the Oregon director of the Western Apicultural Society, a member of the New York Bee Sanctuary Advisory Board, and the regional representative to the Southern Oregon Beekeepers' Association. She is also a "Mountainsmith Brand Ambeesador." (As of Monday afternoon, she was seeking several more adult volunteers to help out at the stations. Those interested can contact her sarah@beegirl.org or 541-708-1127.) You can see her work--and her passion--on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@sarahBeeGirl). She's known by the hashtag, #loveyourbees.

And she does. The logo adorns her bee suit.

Topics at the WAS meeting? They range from Africanized honey bees to top bar hives to how to keep your bees healthy. See schedule. Eric Mussen, who offers 10 reasons why one should attend the conference (see Bug Squad blog), may be reached at ecmussen@ucdavis.edu for further information.

Who isn't fascinated by a praying mantis, that pre-historic looking predator that lurks on a plant and snags honey bees, butterflies and other insects in lightening-quick lunges?

And who isn't fascinated by those who study them, rear them and share their knowledge with others?

Meet “Mantis Master Keeper” Andrew Pfeifer, of Monroe County, N.C. He keeps about 70 mantids in his collection, educates others about this fascinating insect at Bugfest shows, and administers the Facebook page, “Mantis Keepers,” known as world's largest active mantid community, with nearly 7000 members.

“Mantids fascinate me for their predatory behavior more than anything else,” Pfeifer says, “but I also love to see the extreme morphology that many species have adapted to better camouflage in their environment. I've been fascinated with mantids and other arthropods since I was young, but have been keeping and breeding many species for about six years. “In that time I have kept over 25 different species from around the world in any shape, size, and color.” 

Peruse the Mantis Keepers page and you'll be amazed at the wealth of information you'll find. Post a photo of a mantis and he and other administrators will identify it promptly. It's difficult to realize that Andrew Pfeifer is only 17 and a high school senior.

“Andrew has put together a terrific resource for anyone interested in mantids,” commented Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and professor of entomology at the University of California, Davis. “We have quite a number of students and members of the public who love mantids and we point them to him.”

Pfeifer hopes to enroll at North Carolina State University, majoring in—of course!—entomology. Keenly interested in drawing public interest about these incredible insects, he coordinates the mantid exhibit at Virginia Tech's Hokie Bugfest every October, a project he began five years ago. He also assists at the larger North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences'  Bugfest, held in Raleigh, N. C.

“Kids love them," Pfeifer says. "That's why so many enjoy my exhibit every year, as I let the kids handle them with my supervision.”

Pfeifer says his collection on mantids "is a a bit on the low side for the number of species with Phyllocrania paradoxa, Parasphendale affinis, and Hymenopus coronatus." He usually has about 60 mantids, but “that's subject to change with either new hatches, new species entering my collection, or sale of young nymphs to keep my collection running smoothly.”

“I have two new and rare species coming soon, Plistospilota guineensis and Epaphrodita musarum, which will increase the number to about 70 individuals. This doesn't include all the arachnids and other arthropods in my collection.”

At any given locality, Pfeifer says he can usually find a mantis in about 10 minutes if one is in the area. “Depending on the species and location, mantids can be quite easy to find. Species such as Tenodera sinensis seem to love man-made structure around disturbed and weedy areas. During the late summer, many mantids will hang out on goldenrod and other flowering plants, as they are after the many pollinators that visit the blooms. Male mantids may also be collected at light traps during the breeding season when they fly at night.”

“Adult male mantids typically begin flying after about a week or so from reaching maturity," Pfeifer says. "Most fly at night, and actually have a single ear between the second and third pair of legs that is designed to evade bats and their sonar. Females are not capable of flight for most species, and most that can fly are for short distances. Males usually fly for a couple hundred feet at a time.”

Mantids eat a wide variety of insects and other arthopods, Pfefier says. YouTube videos show mantids catching and eating hummingbirds. He's seen them take scorpions. And as "Monarch Moms" and "Monarch Dads" know, the mantid diet includes caterpillars as well as adult butterflies.

“They essentially eat anything,” Pfeifer says. “Moths and flies are among the favorites for my specimens. Grasshoppers often incorporate a large part of an adult female's diet.  I've fed mine just about anything that isn't a vertebrate. They are not put off by insect defenses such as chemical sprays or vomiting, and are well equipped to handle things such as bees and wasps. They can deal with quite a few insect defenses, even able to disable stingers.”

Pfeifer usually feeds his collection cockroaches (Blaptica dubia or Blatta lateralis).

It's a myth that colors determine the gender of a mantis. “Many myths surround the mantids, most of which are merely superstition or made up,” he notes. “Colors do not determine the sex of the mantis, with both males and females capable of being different colors. Mantids are capable of changing the color of their body, but only after molting. A green mantid can turn brown in just one molt.” 

It's also a myth that male mantids always lose their head during courtship or after mating. “Mantids can exhibit cannibalism during courtship, but this is not a common occurrence,” he points out. “It mostly occurs when the female has not had good access to larger prey, and needs the nutrition for egg development. I've had males mate with multiple females without incident, with a male Phyllocrania paradoxa holding the record at eight copulations.” 

Temperate species can hatch, mature, breed, and die in four months in the North, but normally mantids live around six months to a year depending on species,” Pfeifer says, noting that “two of my female Phyllocrania paradoxa are going on 14 months old and are still in good health.”

Although mantids are not endangered, there is one threatened species in Southern Europe, he points out. “They are not illegal to keep or kill, but this one was used to avoid people harming them without need.”

He's kept several unusual native species found in the East, such as Brunneria borealis and Gonatista grisea. “Our native species are quite interesting, and not seen as often as the introduced. Most natives are only found down South, in states such as Florida, Texas, and Arizona. There are over twenty native species, with my favorite being the Texas unicorn mantid (Phyllovates chlorophaea).”

California has only a handful of mantid species, Pfeifer says. The natives include Stagmomantis limbata, Stagmomantis californica and Litaneutria minor. Introduced ones: Mantis religiosa, Tenodera sinensis and Iris oratoria. “Typically you have pockets for native species where you see only one,” he says.

Pfeifer welcomes visitors to the Mantis Keepers site. The introductory statement says it well: “Beauty and charisma of the beloved mantis...it's what binds us all.”

Migratory monarch alert!

They're on their way. 

Camera ready? Check. Notebook ready? Check!

Entomologist David James of Washington State University, Pullman, Wash., who studies the migration routes and overwintering sites of the Pacific Northwest monarch population, told us last Friday, Aug. 25: "Many monarchs have been/are being tagged in Southern Oregon! One has already been recovered showing southern movement, so its likely they will be heading your way very soon!" He maintains a network of Pacific Northwest citizen scientists who rear, tag and release monarchs.

Last year on Sept. 5, Labor Day, a tagged monarch--a male--from his citizen scientist program in Ashland, Ore., fluttered into our yard in Vacaville, Calif. for a five-hour "pit stop" on his way to an overwintering site, probably in Santa Cruz or Pacific Grove. We followed him around, watching him sip nectar from Mexican sunflowers and butterfly bushes. Then we contacted James, sending him photos and information, and wrote about the encounter on a Bug Squad blog.

The tag read "monarch@wsu.edu," and serial number "A6093," which tied the butterfly to Ashland citizen scientist Steve Johnson of the Southern Oregon Monarchs Advocates (SOMA). Johnson tagged and released "A6093" on Sunday, Aug. 28.

"So, assuming it didn't travel much on the day you saw it, it flew 285 miles in 7 days or about 40.7 miles per day," James related.  "Pretty amazing. So, I doubt he broke his journey for much more than the five hours you watched him--he could be 100 miles further south by now. Clearly, this male is on his way to an overwintering colony and it's possible we may sight him again during the winter in Santa Cruz or Pacific Grove!”

As far as we know, the Ashland reared-and-released monarch wasn't sighted again.

Fast forward to this year. We are seeing fewer monarchs this year than last. Last year we reared and released 60 monarchs in our small-scale monarch program. This season, however, we've noticed a drastic drop in the number of visitors to our pollinator garden, which includes plenty of milkweed, their host plant, and even more nectar sources. So far we've reared and released only four monarchs--three females and a male. Four chrysalids remain.

"Yes, it's been a dismal year for monarchs in many areas of the West, unfortunately," James wrote in an email on Aug. 29. "I think it stems from the late winter storms that hit the California coast just as the overwintering colonies were beginning to disperse... I think the survivors that produced the first spring generation of larvae were fewer in number than 'normal.'  Consequently, the next generation (that begins migrating into the Pacific Northwest) was also smaller than usual.  Many areas of the PNW had very few monarchs this year."

The good news, though, the associate professor said,  is "that where monarchs did colonize in Washington, Idaho and Oregon, they had good breeding success, resulting in locally 'normal' or above normal sized summer populations.  So I'm expecting an overwintering population comparable to last year. Thus, you should see a definite increase in numbers of monarchs coming through your yard over the next month!"

We hope so! Meanwhile, keep a lookout for those WSU-tagged monarchs. If you see one, try to photograph it and mail the image and information to David James at monarch@wsu.edu. 

Elina Lastro Niño, Extension apiculturist

If you're a beekeeper and varroa mites are bugging you--to the point whether you wonder if you're keeping bees or the varroa mites are keeping you-- there's hope.

Extension apiculturist Elina Lastro Niño of the University of California, Davis, and  staff research associate Bernardo Niño are planning three classes this fall and one deals specifically with “Varroa Mite Management Strategies.” The all-day short course starts at 9 a.m. and ends at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 22 in the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, 1 Bee Biology Road, west of the UC Davis central campus.

Current beekeeping challenges call for all beekeepers to have a solid understanding of varroa mite biology and management approaches, the husband-wife Niño team said. “We will dive deeper into understanding varroa biology and will devote the majority of the time to discussing pros and cons of various means to monitor mitigate and manage this crucial honey bee pest.”

The course modules will cover varroa biology, effect of varroa on honey bee colonies, non-chemical management, and chemical options. The practical modules will cover mite monitoring, treatment applications, data/record keeping and inspection of colonies for varroa.

The varroa course is limited to 25 participants, who are asked to bring their bee suit/veil if they own one. The $175 registration fee covers the cost of course materials, lunch and refreshments. Registration is underway at https:registration.ucdavis.edu/Item/Details/342. The last day to register is Wednesday, Sept. 20. The blood-sucking varroa mite, which can also transmit diseases, crippling and decimating a hive, is considered a beekeeper's No. 1 enemy.

The Niño team also will give presentations at the Western Apicultural Society's 40th annual conference, to take place Sept. 5-8 on the UC Davis campus. Elina will speak on “Impact of Varroa on Honey Bee Reproductive Castes): Where Will the Research Lead Us?” at at 8:30 a.m., Thursday, Sept. 7 in the Activities and Recreation Center. The three reproductive castes are the queen and worker bee (female), and drone (male).

Bernardo will speak on beehive iterations on Thursday afternoon, Sept. 7 during a conference tour of the Laidlaw facility from 1 to 4. This is part of several education stations planned at the facility and the nearby bee garden, the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, both operated by the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. There's still time to register for the Western Apicultural Society conference.

Then in October, the Niños will teach two more classes at the Laidlaw facility as part of their fall schedule:  “Planning Ahead for Your First Hives” is on Saturday, Oct. 7; and “Queen Rearing Basics” is on Friday, Oct. 20. Both are one-day short courses set from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Laidlaw facility.

Capsule information:

Planning Ahead for Your First Hive, Saturday, Oct. 7, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.: Participants will learn about and practice many aspects of what is necessary to get the colony started and keep it healthy and thriving. This short course will include lectures and hands-on exercises. “This course is perfect for those who have little or no beekeeping experience and would like to obtain more knowledge and practical skills to move on to the next step of owning and caring for their own honey bee colonies,” the Niños  said. At the end of the course participants will be knowledgeable about installing honey bee packages, monitoring their own colonies and possible challenges with maintaining a healthy colony. 

Lecture modules will cover honey bee biology, beekeeping equipment, how to start your colony and maladies of the hive. Practical modules will cover how to build a hive, how to install a package, how to insect your hive and how to monitor for varroa mites.

The course is limited to 25 participants; participants are asked to bring their bee suit or veil if they own one. The $95 registration fee covers the cost of course materials (including a hive tool), lunch and refreshments. Registration is underway at https://registration.ucdavis.edu/Item/Details/314. The last day to register is Friday, Oct. 6.

Queen-Rearing Basics, Friday, Oct. 20, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.. Participants will have an opportunity to learn about the theory behind the queen rearing strategies and topics from basic queen biology to basics of breeding honey bees. “This course is perfect for those who want to learn more about the most important individual in their colonies or have been thinking about rearing the own queens, but might not feel ready to do hands-on exercise," the Niños  said.

Topics covered will include honey bee queen biology, ideal rearing conditions, various queen rearing techniques, mating new queens, installing new queens and basic breeding principles. The course is limited to 25 participants who have basic beekeeping experience. The $125 registration fee covers the cost of breakfast, lunch and refreshments. Registration is underway at https://registration.ucdavis.edu/Item/Details/341. The last day to register is Wednesday, Oct. 18.

About the Niño Team: Elina Niño holds a doctorate in entomology from Pennsylvania State University and Bernardo Niño holds a master's degree in entomology from North Carolina State University. 

Through her extension activities, Elina works to support beekeepers and the beekeeping industry. Her lab offers a variety of beekeeping courses and educational opportunities for beekeepers, future beekeepers, other agricultural professionals and the public. Most recently, her lab has implemented the first ever California Master Beekeeper Program. Her research interests encompass basic and applied approaches to understanding and improving honey bee health and particularly honey bee queen health. Ongoing research projects include understanding the synergistic effects of pesticides on queen health and adult workers in order to improve beekeeping management practice, testing novel biopesticides for efficacy against varroa mites, a major pest of bees, and understanding the benefits of supplemental forage in almond orchards on honey bee health.

Bernardo, whose master's degree dealt with the population and genetic colony structure of the Eastern subterranean termite, switched to honey bees eight years ago. He now keeps “more than 130 colonies “happily buzzing to accommodate the needs of all the researchers in the lab,” and leads projects on varroa control and honey bee health. He has also developed a number of educational programs for diverse audiences and for the past seven years he has been involved with organizing and running queen rearing workshops and serving as the program supervisor of the California Master Beekeeper Program. 

For more information, access the Niño lab website at http://elninobeelab.ucdavis.edu/. Be sure to read Elina's  newsletter, UC Davis Apiculture, linked on the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology home page. You can also keep in touch with the Niño lab's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/elninolab/