- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Visitors at the UC Davis Bohart Museum of Entomology open house on Sunday, Sept. 24 learned how to pin and spread butterflies and moths from entomologist Jeff Smith, curator of the museum's Lepidoptera collection.
The three-hour open house, held from 1 to 4 p.m. in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, Crocker Lane, drew more than 100 visitors.
Smith curates the 400,000-specimen (and growing) collection. The entomologist has spread the wings of more than 200,000 butterflies and moths, or about 7000 a year, since 1988. “I do most of the work at my home (Rocklin), where I spread and identify specimens and add them to the museum collection,” he said.
An associate of the Bohart Museum and a member of the Bohart Museum Society and the Lepidopterists' Society, he was named a recipient of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences' "Friend of the College" award in 2015.
Smith covered several topics: labeling, relaxing dry specimens and spreading.
On labeling:
- Place the label next to the specimen as soon as it is spread
- Use Calibri (body) font size 3.5 to minimize paper
- Use good paper, acid free, a bright white premium
To relax dry specimens, he recommends:
- Use large plastic tub, such as Rubbermaid, Tupperware
- Place 3/4 inch of coarse kitty litter in bottom, sloppy wet with water
- Use a round piece of polyethylene foam on top of the kitty litter to place specimens on
- To prevent mold, use a few crystals of chloro-cresol on poly foam (available from BioQuip Products)
- Specimens are usually relaxed within two to three days.
On spreading, he offered these tips:
- Have a variety of spreading boards with various gaps for different body sizes
- Use wax paper on top
- Use long (1.5 inches) big-headed pins
- Obtain insect pins--most often size #2 (#3 for large bodies, #0 for very small moths) from BioQuip Products or from the Bohart Museum store
- Place specimens on pin about 5/16" from the head (width of the top of the forceps) and make sure this is perpendicular both side to side, and front to back
- Pull forewing up so the bottom edge of the wing, just past horizontal
- Pull up hindwings appropriately
- Place big-headed pins AROUND the edge of the wing through the wax paper
- Support the body of a fresh specimen with 2 pins
- Move the antennae so they are parallel with the leading edge of the forewing
- Some kinds of Lepidoptera (skippers and sphinx moths in particular) may require a #3 insect pin through the wing at a major vein near the top of the wing to prevent the wing from slipping later
- If possible, leave specimens on the spreading board for up to three to weeks to ensure that they are completely dry
It's not easy to pin a butterfly. Just ask research entomologist Tom Zavortink, a Bohart Museum associate who told us: "Personally, I am astounded by the thousands upon thousands of butterflies and moths that Jeff has prepared for display or scientific study. This is no small task because butterfly and moth specimens are usually brought from the field in envelopes or boxes with their wings folded over their backs or around their bodies, and preparing them for display or scientific study involves relaxing them in a humid chamber so their wings and legs can be manipulated, carefully spreading open the wings, positioning them on a flat surface, and securing them in that position until the specimen dries again. This is an onerous task that many entomologists, myself included, shun because we don't have the time, manual dexterity, or patience it takes to prepare quality specimens."
Smith holds two bachelor's degrees from San Jose State University: one in biology and one in environmental health, both with concentrations in entomology. In between degrees, he served four years in the Air Force as a ground crew chief on B-52s and KC-135s. The Air Force awarded him the master crew chief certificate. He saw duty in Thailand and Guam.
Smith also engages in woodworking, a craft he learned from his father. He has made thousands of drawers for the Bohart Museum and “about half are from scratch,” he said. They include 150 drawers from recycled redwood decking and fencing. He makes and donates spreading boards for open houses and for UC Davis Entomology Club clinics.
The Bohart Museum, directed by Lynn Kimsey, UC Davis professor of entomology, is a world-renowned insect museum that houses a global collection of nearly eight million specimens. It also maintains a live “petting zoo,” featuring walking sticks, Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks, praying mantids, and tarantulas. A gift shop, open year around, offers T-shirts, sweatshirts, books, jewelry, posters, insect-collecting equipment and insect-themed candy.
The Bohart Museum's regular hours are from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. The museum is closed to the public on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and on major holidays. Admission is free.
For more information, contact the bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or access the website or Facebook page.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Smith will show attendees how to pin butterflies during the three-hour open house. The event, free and open to the public, will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, Crocker Lane.
"This open house purposely coincides with UC Davis dorm move-in weekend," says Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator. "Our target audience is new students and their families, but everyone is welcome. The focus is how to study insects at home and in school--any age."
The UC Davis Entomology Club, headed by Chloe Shott, president, will participate. Undergraduate entomology student advisor Brandy Fleming will be on hand (tabling) to talk about classes, careers, and fun with entomology. Yang is also planning a display featuring cabbage white butterflies for educators.
Smith, a resident of Rocklin, curates the 400,000-specimen (and growing) collection. The entomologist has spread the wings of more than 200,000 butterflies and moths, or about 7000 a year, since 1988. “I do most of the work at my home (Rocklin), where I spread and identify specimens and add them to the museum collection,” he said.
“My life is dedicated to this passion of entomology,” said Smith, an associate of the Bohart Museum and a member of the Bohart Museum Society and the Lepidopterists' Society. He was named a recipient of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences' "Friend of the College" award in 2015.
“Entomology is my passion and the Bohart Museum is my cause.” He retired in 2013 from a 35-year career with Univar Environmental Science but that just means he can spend more time at the insect museum.
It's not easy to pin a butterfly. Just ask research entomologist Tom Zavortink, a Bohart Museum associate who told us: "Personally, I am astounded by the thousands upon thousands of butterflies and moths that Jeff has prepared for display or scientific study. This is no small task because butterfly and moth specimens are usually brought from the field in envelopes or boxes with their wings folded over their backs or around their bodies, and preparing them for display or scientific study involves relaxing them in a humid chamber so their wings and legs can be manipulated, carefully spreading open the wings, positioning them on a flat surface, and securing them in that position until the specimen dries again. This is an onerous task that many entomologists, myself included, shun because we don't have the time, manual dexterity, or patience it takes to prepare quality specimens."
Smith holds two bachelor's degrees from San Jose State University: one in biology and one in environmental health, both with concentrations in entomology. In between degrees, he served four years in the Air Force as a ground crew chief on B-52s and KC-135s. The Air Force awarded him the master crew chief certificate earlier than other crew members. He saw duty in Thailand and Guam.
Smith also engages in woodworking, a craft he learned from his father. To date, he has made thousands of drawers for the Bohart Museum and “about half are from scratch,” he said. They include 150 drawers from recycled redwood decking and fencing. He makes and donates spreading boards for open houses and for UC Davis Entomology Club clinics.
One of Smith's philosophies is “to leave the world better than I found it, and that pertains not only to my work in the Bohart but also to my 35-year career at Univar.”
Another involves the Golden Rule, or as he says “If you wouldn't want someone doing it to you, don't do it to them.” And a third philosophy "that I stole" from an inspirational man who teaches music to inner city youth in Los Angeles: “Love what you do, do what you love, and take the time to teach others about your passion.”
The Bohart Museum, directed by Lynn Kimsey, UC Davis professor of entomology, is a world-renowned insect museum that houses a global collection of nearly eight million specimens. It also maintains a live “petting zoo,” featuring walking sticks, Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks, praying mantids, and tarantulas. A gift shop, open year around, offers T-shirts, sweatshirts, books, jewelry, posters, insect-collecting equipment and insect-themed candy.
The Bohart Museum's regular hours are from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. The museum is closed to the public on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and on major holidays. Admission is free.
For more information, contact the bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or access the website or Facebook page.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
That would be the recent open house at the Bohart Museum of Entomology, University of California, Davis, on "Bark Beetles and Forest Health," coordinated by USDA Forest Service research entomologist/UC Davis affiliate Steve Seybold and his graduate and undergraduate students.
It was definitely a beetle invasion. You couldn't see the Bohart for the trees!
"It was a mixed conifer forest right out of the central Sierra Nevada,” Seybold commented.
“As of last winter, bark beetles had killed 102 million trees in California during the last drought period,” said Seybold, who is a lecturer with the UC Davis Entomology and Nematology. “Tree mortality in the western United States over the past 15 years caused by native bark beetles exceeded 21 million hectares, which surpasses all other disturbances, including fire.”
UC Davis Department of Design emeritus professor and environmental artist Ann Savageau, showcased her wood sculptures patterned with bark beetle galleries. Retired from UC Davis in 2014, she now works as a full-time studio artist.
Visitors marveled at the eight-foot trunk sections of mass-attacked conifers as the scientists peeled back bark to reveal larvae of bark beetles and wood borers in their galleries in the phloem and xylem. Visitors also learned about the development of bark beetle pheromones and their release devices, and the role of semiochemicals (behavioral chemicals) to lure and repel the beetles.
One display station zeroed in on the onslaught of invasive bark and wood boring beetles, including the walnut twig beetle, goldspotted oak borer, and polyphagous shot hole borer, all among California's 25 new invasive species.
The scientists warned that beetle-infested firewood can become a “Trojan horse” when campers unknowingly transport beetles from site to site and spread the pests.
Enlarged aerial photos of southern Sierra Nevada forests--taken by USDA Forest Service Aerial Survey Unit in May and August 2016--hammered home the havoc that bark beetles can and do wreak. Visitors also learned about bark beetles via a computer slide show, and looked at specimens of western pine beetle, pine engravers, and fir engravers through a scanning electron microscope (on loan from Hitachi to the museum). The microscope magnified the specimens 100 times.
A craft table near Ann Savageau's exhibit featured the family craft activity, "Bark Beetle Art." Children traced and colored bark beetle patterns on paper, and also colored bark beetle gallery patterns on wood samples. Then they hung their art as ornaments on "The Bark Beetle Tree," a white fir.
Entomologist Wade Spencer, a UC Davis undergraduate student and an associate at the Bohart Museum, enthralled the crowd by reading Vlasta van Kampen's children's book, “Beetle Bedlam,” about a bark beetle on trial for killing trees in the forest.
Despite the 107-degree temperatures, the open house drew some 110 visitors, representing Davis, Elk Grove, Fairfield, Pinecrest, Redding, Sacramento, South Lake Tahoe, Vacaville, Woodland, and other cities.
Assisting Seybold were Yigen Chen, formerly with the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and now with Gallo Wines in Modesto; UC Davis entomology graduate students Jackson Audley and Corwin Parker; UC Davis junior specialist Megan Siefker; UC Davis undergraduate student Crystal Homicz; and graduate student Irene Lona of California State University, Chico.
Representing the Bohart Museum were Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart and UC Davis professor of entomology; senior museum scientist Steve Heydon; Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator; and Bohart associates/volunteers Greg Kareofelas, Wade Spencer, Chloe Stott. Riley Gilmartin, Joel Hernandez, Maia Lundy, amd Alex Nguyen.
Seybold credited Rob York, UC Berkeley Center for Forestry, Blodgett Forest Research Station. for providing infested tree and wood samples for the displays; Jeffrey W. Moore, USDA Forest Service R5 Forest Health Protection, Davis for providing the aerial imagery of California tree mortality; and Ross Gerrard, USDA Forest Service PSW Research Station, Davis, for providing the poster-sized photos and illustrations for the exhibit.
Want to attend the next Bohart Museum open house? It's from 1 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 24 in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, Crocker Lane. The theme is "Insects and U" and it's in keeping with the arrival of UC Davis students for the fall quarter. The open house, a family friendly event, is free and open to the public.
"This purposely coincides with UC Davis dorm move-in weekend," said Tabatha Yang. "Our target audience is new students and their families, but everyone is welcome. The focus is how to study insects at home and in school--any age."
Undergraduate advisor Brandy Fleming will be on hand (tabling) to talk about classes, careers, and fun with entomology.
Yang is also planning a display featuring cabbage white butterflies for educators.
The Bohart Museum is a world-renowned insect museum that houses a global collection of nearly eight million specimens. It also maintains a live “petting zoo,” featuring walking sticks, Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks, praying mantids, and tarantulas. A gift shop, open year around, offers T-shirts, sweatshirts, books, jewelry, posters, insect-collecting equipment and insect-themed candy.
The insect museum's regular hours are from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. The museum is closed to the public on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and on major holidays. Admission is free.
For more information, email the bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or access the website or Facebook page.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Mark your calendar!
Here's an opportunity--especially for new students and prospective students at the University of California, Davis and their families--to learn about insects.
While students are moving into the dorms on Sunday, Sept. 24, an open house, themed "Insects and U," will take place at the Bohart Museum of Entomology from 1 to 4 p.m. in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building on Crocker Lane.
The open house, a family friendly event, is free and open to the public of all ages.
"This purposely coincides with UC Davis dorm move-in weekend," says Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator. "Our target audience is new students and their families, but everyone is welcome. The focus is how to study insects at home and in school--any age."
Undergraduate advisor Brandy Fleming will be on hand (tabling) to talk about classes, careers, and fun with entomology.
Yang is also planning a display featuring cabbage white butterflies for educators.
The Bohart Museum, directed by Lynn Kimsey, UC Davis professor of entomology, is a world-renowned insect museum that houses a global collection of nearly eight million specimens. It also maintains a live “petting zoo,” featuring walking sticks, Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks, praying mantids, and tarantulas. A gift shop, open year around, offers T-shirts, sweatshirts, books, jewelry, posters, insect-collecting equipment and insect-themed candy.
The Bohart Museum's regular hours are from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays. The museum is closed to the public on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and on major holidays. Admission is free.
For more information, contact the bmuseum@ucdavis.edu or access the website or Facebook page.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Just as all lady bugs aren't ladies, all widow skimmer dragonflies aren't female.
A mature male Libellula luctuosa, aka “Widow Skimmer," (as identified by Bohart Museum of Entomology associate and dragonfly expert Greg Kareofelas), recently delighted us with a visit to our Vacaville pollinator garden. He perched on a bamboo stake and appeared to be considering his fast-food menu--leafcutter bees, sweat bees, hover flies, mosquitoes. Hmm...decisions, decisions!
Mr. Widow Skimmer was probably not expecting the unexpected--a strong gust of wind flapped his wings over his head! Talk about having bad hair day...
What drew us to him--besides the wind!--was his steel blue coloring and his broad wing bands. Look closely and you can see his three pairs of black legs. They catch prey with their legs and then use their "fangs" to raise it to their mouth.
"The species name means sorrowful or mournful, perhaps because the wings of both male and female seem to be draped in mourning crepe," observes BugGuide.Net. They're "found across most of the United States except the Rocky Mountain region. The range continues southward across the Mexican border. The widow skimmer has been reported from four Canadian provinces: Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia."
How did Kareofelas know it was a mature male, recently mated? Well, when they reproduce, they form a wheel or heart shape (the process of reproduction is known as "in tandem"). Kareofelas saw the marks on the male's abdomen where the female clasped the male.
"Mature male," he said.