- 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.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
That was the consensus at the Bohart Museum of Entomology open house when attendees tried to locate the queen in the bee observation hive at a table staffed by UC Davis graduate student Richard Martinez of the Elina Lastro Niño lab, Department of Entomology and Nematology.
Martinez purposefully didn't mark the queen.
"Most kids thought the queen was going to be marked--common beekeeping practice--but mine wasn't, so they thought that was unfair," Martinez quipped. "Only one kid was able to find the queen. And it was toward the end of the event. The queen was laying an egg when we found her."
The drones, the males, also drew avid interest.
"After I mentioned the hive has drones, what i referred to as 'the boys'--it helps kids understand their role in the hive--they were fascinated with finding the drones, which they did."
Most kids, however, confused drones for the queen, Martinez said.
Attendees, both adults and youth, delighted in trying on the beekeeper veils and suits, and examining the hive tools and other apiary equipment.
"A lot of the kids asked what bees do inside the hive," Martinez said. "So I went through my list of roles honey bees carry out. One family was super invested in the science behind honey bee research, particularly nutrition, which is what I study."
"It was a pretty fun event," he said.
The queen bee, the largest bee in the colony, has a long, narrow, pointed abdomen, and shorter wings than the worker bee. The worker has a rounded abdomen and wings that extend almost to the end of the abdomen. The drone, stout in body, has what some call "wrap around eyes."
The Bohart Museum open house, held May 19 not only featured honey bees (managed bees) but wild bees. (More images pending)
Martinez, a master's student, studies honey bee health, specializing in nutrition, in the lab of E. L. Niño, associate professor of Cooperative Extension, and a member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology faculty.
Martinez recently helped staffed the UC Davis Entomology Graduate Student Association (EGSA) t-shirt booth at Briggs Hall during the 110th annual UC Davis Picnic Day, where he and fellow graduate students wore "Bugbie" shirts. The t-shirt, designed by Marielle Hansel Friedman, a second-year doctoral student in the lab of urban landscape entomologist Emily Meineke, features a rosy maple moth, Dryocampa rubicunda. (EGSA offers a variety of t-shirts on its sales website at https://ucdavisentgrad.square.site/.)
The Bohart Museum, located in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis, houses a global collection of eight million insects, plus a live petting zoo, and a gift shop. Professor Jason Bond, 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, directs the museum. He also serves as president-elect of the American Arachnological Society.
The next open houses are set for
- Saturday, July 20: "Moth Night at the Museum," 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
- Saturday, Sept. 28: "Museum ABCs: Arthropods Bohart, and Collecting," 1 to 4:30 p.m.
All open houses are free and family friendly; parking is also free on weekends.
Summer public walk-in hours are on Tuesdays, June 17-Aug. 27 from 9 a.m. to noon, and from 1 to 4 p.m. The museum will be closed to the general public from Sept. 1-22.
For more information, access the website at https://bohart.ucdavis.edu or contact bmuseum@ucdavis.edu.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
They'll be safe and dry in the bee observation hives.
The free and family friendly event, co-sponsored by the University of California, Davis, takes place from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday, May 4, at the Yolo County Fairgrounds, 1250 East Gum Ave. Parking is free, a spokesperson said.
The festival traditionally takes place in downtown Woodland and draws a crowd of some 40,000.
The California Honey Festival emphasizes the importance of bees and promotes honey and bee products. It features educational presentations, kids' center activities, honey tasting, cooking demonstrations, a beer and mead garden, live music, vendors and more. Beekeeping organizations will answer questions about bees and showcase bee observation hives.
Speakers at presentations in Waite Hall will include GATEways horticulturist Rachel Davis of the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden, who will speak from 3:30 to 4 p.m.
“I'll be talking about pollinator gardening, focusing on native bees, butterflies, moths, hoverflies, and hummingbirds,” Davis said. “The My Habit Horticulture Learning by Leading™ and UC Master Gardener team will be tabling about Climate-Ready Gardening, with an emphasis on biodiversity and gardening for pollinators. We want to equip gardeners with tools to create beautiful, habitat-supporting landscapes that are primed to thrive in the face of our changing climate.”
The line-up of speakers at Waite Hall:
11 to 11:30, 2024 American Honey Queen Kaelyn Sumner
11:45 to 12:15: Cache Creek Conservancy, Jolene Jindrich
12:30 to 1 p.m. SugarBee Apples, sponsor of the California Honey Festival
1:1 to 1:45: Hives for Heroes, Charles McMaster
2 to 2:30: California Beekeeping Federation “The Truth About Honey Bees, Almonds and a Partnership That's Sweeter Than Honey" with Trevor Tauzer (Tauzer Apiaries) and Kelli Evans (Blue Diamond Growers)
2:45 to 3:15: SugarBee Apples
3:30 to 4 p.m.: UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden, Rachel Davis
4:15 to 4:45: Honeybee Discovery Center, Nicole Johansson
5 to 5:30: 2024 American Honey Queen Kaelyn Sumner
The UC Davis-based California Master Beekeeper Program, which uses science-based information to educate stewards and ambassadors for honey bees and beekeeping, will not be participating this year. But science-based information on bees will be provided by the California State Beekeepers Association and the Sacramento Area Beekeepers' Association.
Capsule information on some of the organizations or speakers:
American Honey Queen, Kaelyn Sumner
American Honey Queen Kaelyn Sumner of Cecil, Wisc., is a senior at Kansas State University majoring in agricultural education and minoring in food science and entomology. She traces her interest in beekeeping to the FFA, where she was nationally recognized for her specialty animal production project and her agriscience fair research. The American Honey Bee Program, part of the American Beekeeping Federation, which educates and advocates for beekeepers and United States honey consumption.
Cache Creek Conservancy, Jolene Jindrich
The Cache Creek Conservancy is a non-profit organization founded in 1996. Its mission is to restore, preserve and protect the Cache Creek watershed. The focus of the Conservancy's work has been riparian restoration along a 14-mile stretch of the Lower Cache Creek as mentioned in the Yolo County's Cache Creek Resources Management Plan.
Jolene Jindrich helps care for the Tending and Gathering Center (TGG). She holds a bachlor's degree in microbiology from Humboldt State University, where she studied genetics, plant physiology and cell biology and spent time volunteering in biology and chemistry labs. She works with the Habitat Restoration Manager and the TGG Steering Committee to tend desirable native species, manage non-natives, maintain the trails and generally improve both the visual aesthetics and habitat value.
Hives for Heroes, Charles McMaster
Hives for Heroes® is a national non-profit service organization focusing on sustainability, conservation, and providing a healthy transition from service. Through our national network of beekeepers, we provide connection, purpose, and healthy relationships, through access, resources, and funding for Active Duty, Veterans, and First Responders.
McMaster, of Copperas Cove, Texas, is the connections director of Hives for Heroes, a U.S. Army veteran, and a six-year beekeeper. He devotes much of his time as a member of the board of directors of the Texas Beekeepers Association.
“The UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden spans the campus's 5300-plus acres and includes the historic Arboretum – a 100-plus acre campus and regional amenity comprised of demonstration gardens and scientific collections as well as the Putah Creek Riparian Reserve – a rare stream and grassland ecosystem managed for teaching, research, wildlife and habitat protection.”--Website
Honeybee Discovery Center, Nicole Johansson
The Honeybee Discovery Center, currently located at 501 Walker St., Orland., Glenn County, Calif., is designed to teach the public about honey bees and the rich history of beekeeping in Northern California, according to its website. "The Center is a place for the public and schools to learn about honeybees and for the beekeeping community to display items that are part of beekeeping and its history."
Northern California is known for its queen bee rearing, with tens of thousands of queen bees produced annually. Orland is considered the “Queen Bee Capital of North America.” Eighty percent of the queen bees raised in the United States are from Butte, Glenn, Shasta, and Tehama counties, "The Golden Triangle.” Orland is also the 40th “Bee City, USA” with a commitment to creating greater awareness and an environment that protects honey bees and other pollinators. Yvonne Koehnen of the C. F. Koehnen & Sons Inc., originated the idea of the Honeybee Discovery Center. The Center, which includes a museum, is open the first consecutive Friday and Saturday of every month from 3 to 6 p.m.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Noted bee scientist Jamie Ellis, a University of Florida professor, will speak on "Understanding the Risks that Pesticides Pose to Honey Bees" at a UC Davis seminar at 4:10 p.m., Monday, April 1. This is a zoom seminar.
Here are the particulars!
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Today's Honorary Bee Image Award goes to...drum roll...an image of a humble hoverfly appearing on the National Geographic Facebook page.
The caption reads "A bee sits on a marigold flower in Coronado National Forest, Arizona, USA."
Bee? Umm, no!
Marigold? Umm, no!
Sits? A bee does what?
Hey, hoverfly, you're an honorary bee!
Indeed, why can't the hoverfly, aka syrphid fly or flower fly, gain a little stature?
As of 3 p.m. today, this mistaken-identity image has drawn 2,400 views, 66 comments and 136 shares from National Geographic's 50 million FB followers.
It's a beautiful insect image by freelance photographer David Littschwacher. Who wrote the caption? Not an entomologist. Ironically, however, numerous National Geographic followers are unaware of the faux paux. A sprinkling of the comments:
- "Beautiful picture"
- "Very nice photo; spring brings lots of flowers"
- "A beautiful sight!"
- "Our nature...priceless"
- "Nature's delicate balance beautifully displayed in Coronado National Forest, Arizona, USA."
- "You might want to check your identification on both plant and insect"
- "Not a bee but a hoverfly"
- "That bee is a species of hoverfly, absolutely surprised at you, of all organizations"
- "Leave it to NatGeo…"
- "You would think Nat Geo could identify a bee, instead of a fly! Lesson for people that trust anything on social media, especially pictures"
- "Not on a marigold, either"
- "Looks more like a fly...National Geographic--do your research!"
With so much misinformation and disinformation spreading globally, even the humble hoverfly gets into the act!
Probably one of the most embarrassing mistakes, though, is that dratted fly on the cover of Bees of the World, authored by noted hymenopterists Christopher O'Toole and Anthony Raw.
Syrphid flies (order Diptera) are easily distinguished from honey bees (order Hymenoptera). Among the key differences: (1) syrphids have only one pair of wings, while honey bees have two (2) syrphids have short, stubby antennae, while honey bees have long, bent antennae called genticulate antennae and (3) syrphids have large, wrap-around eyes and honey bees do not.
And if you watch them in action, a hoverfly will hover over a flower before touching down (thus the name). A honey bee is more directional in her flight pattern as she buzzes in to forage on a flower.
Some hoverflies mimic the coloration of bees and wasps, gaining a little protection from predators. Unlike bees, however, hoverflies don't sting.
But cheers, both are pollinators!