- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
He told the villagers to line up in town square with their sickles. When they did, he immediately fingered the killer. The killer confessed.
How did Song Ci know? Because minute traces of blood left on the "cleaned" sickle drew a swarm of blow flies.
That was one of the stories that UC Davis forensic entomologist Robert "Bob" Kimsey of the Department of Entomology and Nematology recounted in his 45-minute talk during the Bohart Museum of Entomology open house on "Forensics and Insects."
Song Ci, also a judge, physician, anthropologist and writer, went on to author the book, Collected Cases of Injustice Rectified, containing the oldest known cases of forensic entomology.
In his presentation, Kimsey discussed the life cycle and development of blow flies and other insects. He is frequently called as a expert court witness at murder trials.
"Correct species identification is all important," said Kimsey, aka "Dr. Bob," in noting that different species have different development rates. He compared the life cycle of four species--Cochliomyia macellaria (secondary screwworm), Chrysoma rufifacies (a blow fly species), Phomia regina (a black blow fly), and Lucilia sericata (a common green bottle fly)--developing at a temperature of 27 Celsius. C. macellaria is the fastest and P. regina is the slowest, he said.
Kimsey also showed a chart illustrating the approximate age of a blow fly developing during a temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Another chart included information on the succession of arthropod taxa on carrion.
Following his talk, held in the nearby Museum of Wildlife and Fish Biology lecture room, Kimsey fielded questions in his "Dr. Death booth" in the Bohart Museum. He annually portrays Dr. Death at Briggs Hall during the annual campuswide UC Davis Picnic Day every April.
At the open house, the Bohart Museum displayed a number of species involved in forensic entomology, including
- Acalyptrate flies, numerous and diverse families, scavenging maggots
- Bluebottle flies, family Calliphoridae, scavenging maggots
- Green bottle flies, family Calliphoridae, scavenging maggots
- Large carrion, or burying beetles, family Silphidae
- Flesh flies, family Sarchophagidae, scavenging maggots
- Coffin flies, family Phoridae, scavenging maggots
- Clown or hister beetles, family Histeridae, predaceous beetles
- Red-legged ham beetle, family Cleridae, omnivorous predators that also scavenge
- Sap beetles, family Nitidulidae, "indirect" scavenge beetles
- Cockroaches, order Blattodea, scavenging larvae and adults
- Rove beetles, family Staphylinidae, predaceous beetles and their larvae
- Termites, infraorder Isoptera, scavengers for nitrogen
- Ants, family Formicidae, predators and scavengers
Ants: "Ants are a nightmare for the forensic entomologist! They are of little use as evidence as yet, but they can easily confound the development of vital evidence by establishing residency and defending the decedent from other scavengers, and further delay development of vital evidence by carrying off fly eggs and small maggots. Thus, they can delay progress of insect-mediated decomposition and feed vital evidence to their developing larval ants: the first, thus oldest and most important maggot cohorts (to the forensic entomologist)! They also ambush, kill and dismember female flies coming to the decedent to lay eggs."
Green Bottle Flies: "Green bottle flies are iridescent green in color. They belong to the genus Lucilia and comprise some of the most common flies with maggots that feed on carrion. A number of species, including the green bottle fly, Lucilia sericata, and the bronze bottle fly, Lucilia cuprina, have been introduced worldwide by human commerce, and the later, also known as the Australian sheep blow fly, commonly infests living sheep in Australia, causing enormous economic damage."
Termites: "In other parts of the world, insects exotic to what we in the temperate zones consider to be the standard groups associated with carrion, assist in the decomposition process. Termites in Central America exemplify such 'exotics' to decomposition, building mud casings over and defending carrion against all comers in an effort to garner nitrogenous materials to supplement their extremely nitrogen-poor diet."
Clown or Hister Beetles: "Distinctively shiny black and resembling a pill, these small to very small beetles feed on a great diversity of small arthropods found in carrion, including the smallest stages of maggots, fly eggs and scavenger or predaceous mites. Active at night, the numerous carrion-associated species appear in nearly all stages of decomposition, often specializing on prey found only in a particular stage.
Flesh Flies: "This very large family consists of large robust scavenger species and small species that parasitize other insects. The scavengers, Sarchophaga and Blaesozipha, frequently do not usually lay eggs but frequently deposit a small number of first-stage maggots on carrion, which puts their maggots at a distinct advantage over maggots of egg-laying species."
Cockroaches: "A number of cockroach species found around the house (peridomestic) will gnaw on the skin of decedents indoors during the early fresh stage of decomposition. They are well known to chew on the calluses, clean debris from under the fingernails and around the toes of sleeping sailors on ancient sailing ships right through to the current day. This kind of depredation occurs in circumstances of overwhelming cockroach infestations. In similar circumstances, they are also responsible for chewing on the ears and eyelashes of newborn infants in cases of child neglect."
The family art-and-crafts activity involved maggot-inspired art. Participants dipped maggots in non-toxic, water-based paint and guided them on white paper to create their masterpieces, suitable for framing or at least as conversation pieces. (Photos to appear in June 9th Bug Squad blog)
The next open house at the Bohart Museum is "Night at the Museum" (Moth Night) from 7 to 11 p.m. on Saturday, July 22. All open houses are free and family friendly, and parking, too, is free.
The Bohart Museum, directed by UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens. It also maintains a live "petting zoo" (Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks, tarantulas and more) and an insect-themed gift shop, stocked with t-shirts, hoodies, jewelry, posters, books, pens and collecting equipment.
The Bohart Museum is located in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis campus. The Bohart will be open to the public (walk-ins) only on Tuesdays from 2 to 5 p.m., this summer, starting June 13. This is due to the high number of outreach programs, summer camps, scheduled tours and unavailability of staff. More information is available on the website or by emailing bmuseum@ucdavis.edu.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Don't miss the Bohart Museum of Entomology open house on "Insects and Forensics," featuring UC Davis forensic entomologist Robert “Bob” Kimsey of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.
The open house, free and family friendly, is set for 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, June 3 in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis campus. “He will give a brief introduction to the field at the start of the event in the wildlife classroom (next door) and then we will move into our regular one-on-one, question-and-answer format,” announced Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator.
Kimsey, who received his bachelor's degree and doctorate from UC Davis, focuses his research on public health entomology, arthropods of medical importance, and zoonotic disease, as well as the biology and ecology of tick-borne pathogens, and tick feeding behavior and biochemistry.
Kimsey staffs the annual “Dr. Death” booth at Briggs Hall during the campuswide UC Davis Picnic Day. He pin-mounts and identifies flies from various cases and research efforts, and displays 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. He also discussed recently adjudicated cases.
Kimsey wears a number of hats. He's the master advisor of the Animal Biology major; an assistant adjunct professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology; and the faculty chair of the department's Picnic Day. He's also the advisor to the UC Davis Entomology Club and that includes guiding students to such venues as Alcatraz Island to see the flies and other insects. He's also known as "The Fly Man of Alcatraz" for his fly research.
Known as an outstanding teacher, advisor and mentor, Kimsey won the 2020 top faculty academic advising award from the international NACADA, the “global community for academic advising.”
Kimsey is also a 2019 winner of a faculty advising award from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the Eleanor and Harry Walker Advising Awards. He previously won the UC Davis Outstanding Faculty Advising Award, and the Distinction in Student Mentoring Award from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America.
The Bohart Museum, directed by UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey (wife of Bob Kimsey), is the home of a global collection of eight million insect specimens, plus a live "petting zoo" (including Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks and tarantulas) and an insect-themed gift shop, stocked with T-shirts, hoodies, jewelry, posters, books, pens and collecting equipment.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
They really weren't red ants, but children wearing ant headgear, created during the family arts-and-crafts activity at the Bohart Museum of Entomology's open house on ants. The Phil Ward lab, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, organized and presented the open house.
The ant headgear was the brainchild of Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator, and student intern Jakob Jess of MET Sacramento High School. He completed his two-year internship at the Bohart Museum this week, and starting this fall, will begin his studies at UC Berkeley.
"This was an art project inspired by leafcutter ants," Yang said, "and was meant to be both whimsical and colorful, thus the bright red. We had a template for folks to use, but they could also create their own from looking at the ant illustrations."
Myrmecologist Eli Sarnat, who received his doctorate at UC Davis, studying with Professor Ward, brought his sons, Benjamin, 7 and Evan, 3 to the event. They delighted in creating the ant headgear and checking out the ant displays.
UC Davis senior entomology major Morgan Myhre helped her children, Galileo, 5, and Esmeralda, 2, with their creations.
First-year entomology major Kat Taylor staffed the arts-and-crafts table, assisting the youngsters with their ideas. She also stapled the finished projects.
"The questions were mostly about the habits and behavior of ants, how many species are there, etc.," Ward related. "And how can I obtain live colonies for my kid? I received almost no queries about 'how do I get rid of them in my kitchen?' and that was refreshing."
"We had live colonies of a centipede-hunting ant (Stigmatomma oregonense) and a generalist omnivore (Aphaenogaster occidentalis)," Ward said. "The displays also included collections of common California ants; the world's smallest ant (Carebara) and the world's largest ant (Myrmecia)."
Oberski, who received her bachelor's degree in biology and a bachelor's degree in German studies (summa cum laude) in 2016 from Macalester College, Saint Paul, Minn., finished her dissertation earlier this month. She will present her exit seminar on "Phylogenetics and Biography of Pyramid Ants" at 4:10 p.m., Wednesday, June 7 in 122 Briggs Hall. It also will be on Zoom.
Oberski fielded such questions as "What do ants eat?" and "Are ants specialized or generalized in their feeding habits?" The answer can vary a lot, Oberski told them. "Some ants are generalists that eat any food they come across, but others are extremely specific, like ants that are fungus farmers or specialized predators of springtails, spider eggs, or centipedes."
Professor Ward and ants are showcased in a Bohart Museum of Entomology video on YouTube, https://youtu.be/d8eRNsD8dxo. Ants, he related, originated about 120 million years ago (early Cretaceous), evolving from "wasp-like creatures."
Next Open House on June 3. The next open house at the Bohart Museum is themed "Insects and Forensics," and will feature forensic entomologist Robert "Bob" Kimsey of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. Free and family friendly, the open house will take place from 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, June 3 in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane. The arts-and-crafts activity will be "maggot-inspired art," Yang announced.
The Bohart Museum, directed by UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens. It also maintains a live "petting zoo," complete with Madagascar hissing cockroaches, stick insects, and tarantulas, among others; and an insect-themed gift shop, stocked with books, posters, jewelry, pens, T-shirts, hoodies, and collecting equipment.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Or come for the hissers, stay for the ants.
Either way, it's all good.
When the Bohart Museum of Entomology hosts an open house on Sunday, May 21 from 1 to 4 p.m., ants will be the main attraction, but don't forget the critters in the live "petting zoo."
The Phil Ward lab, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, will provide live ants and specimens, and answer questions, one on one.
The open house, free and family friendly, takes place in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis campus.
At the petting zoo, you can meet Princess Herbert, Coco McFluffin, Peaches and Beatrice and more.
Those are just a few of the tenants, says research associate Brittany Kohler, the zookeeper. Here are some of the critters:
Walking Sticks (5 species):
- Great thin stick insects (Ramulus nematodes), native to Malaysia, dimorphic (blue males)
- Borneo thorny stick insect (Aretaon asperrimus), native to Borneo
- Vietnamese stick insect (Medauroidea extradentata), native to Vietnam
- Golden-eyed stick insect (Peruphasma schultei) native to Peru/Ecuador
- Australian Leaf insect (Extatosoma tiaratum), native to Northern forests of Australia
Tarantulas/Spiders (6 species):
- Princess Herbert, the Brazilian salmon-pink bird-eating tarantula (Lasiodora parahybana). She is estimated to be around 20 years old, the oldest current resident of the Bohart Museum
- Peaches, the Chilean rose hair tarantula (Grammostola rosea)
- Coco McFluffin, the Chaco golden knee tarantula (Grammostola pulchripes), native to Paraguay and Argentina
- Two black widows (Latrodectus hesperus)
- One brown widow (Latrodectus geometricus)
Cockroaches (2 species):
- Madagascar hissing cockroaches (Gromphadorhina sp.)
- Giant Cave cockroach (Blaberus giganteus)
Centipede:
- Beatrice the Vietnamese centipede (Scolopendra subspinipes), the newest resident
Also:
- Ironclad beetles
- Bark scorpion
The Bohart Museum, directed by UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens, plus the petting zoo and a gift shop stocked with insect-themed books, posters, jewelry, t-shirts, hoodies and more. Founded in 1946 and committed to "understanding, documenting and communicating terrestrial arthropod diversity," the Bohart Museum is named for UC Davis professor and noted entomologist Richard Bohart. The insect museum is open to the public Mondays through Thursdays, from 8 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 5 p.m.
More information is available on the Bohart website at https://bohart.ucdavis.edu or by emailing bmuseum@ucdavis.edu.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Right.
They belong to the same order, Hymenoptera, but some folks insist that ants don't belong in your life.
Oh, but they do!
Find out why at the Bohart Museum of Entomology open house from 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, May 21. The event, spotlighting ants, is free and family friendly. It will take place in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane.
Members of the Phil Ward lab, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, will answer your questions, show live ants and specimens, and engage in one-on-one discussions.
In a video released by the Bohart Museum of Entomology during a campuswide Biodiversity Museum Day, Professor Ward related: "Ants have occupied almost all of the world's land surfaces, from deserts to rain forests. There's a few places they're absent. They're not in Antarctica, no surprise! They haven't colonized the Arctic and a few very high elevation tropical mountains, but apart from that, almost any place you go on land you'll see our friends, the ants. And they have assumed a quite a diverse array of ecological roles. Some of them are predators, others are scavengers, and some are seed collectors, and these habits vary tremendously among different species in different parts of the world."
Among the Ward lab personnel scheduled to participate are doctoral candidates Jill Oberski and Zach Griebenow (both are expected to receive their PhDs this year), and third-year doctoral student Ziv Lieberman. Griebenow and Oberski are veterans of UC Davis teams that won national championships in the Entomological Society of America's Entomology Games or "Bug Bowls." (See news story) UC Davis teams won national championships in 2022, 2018, 2016 and 2015.
Meanwhile, be sure to watch what Professor Ward says in the video posted on YouTube at https://youtu.be/d8eRNsD8dxo. He illustrated his talk with ant images taken by his former doctoral student Alex Wild (PhD from UC Davis in 2005), curator of entomology at the University of Texas, Austin, and a noted macro photographer, (http://www.alexanderwild.com).
How ancient are ants? Ants originated about 120 million years ago (early Cretaceous), evolving from "wasp-like creatures," Ward said. They are members of the order Hymenoptera, and their closest relatives include honey bees, cockroach wasp and the mud daubers.
How many species in California? California is home to some 300 species of ants, but thousands more live in the tropics. Globally, there may be as many as 40,000 to 50,000 species of ants, the professor estimated, but only about 14,000 are described.
How do they communicate? Ants communicate largely by chemical (pheromones) and tactile means, Ward said. Their vision is "not particularly acute." He pointed out that that they lay a trail pheromones from the source of food back to the nest. They have alarm pheromones, causing other workers to act defensively. Chemicals also help ants distinguish their nest mates.
What about those Argentine ants? Some ants, like the Argentine ants, are pests. These invaders from South America "form super colonies, which means different colonies don't fight each other; they're all cooperating. And the other downside of Argentine ants is that they tend to eliminate native ants. So over the years I've lived in Davis, I have certainly noticed that native ants have declined as the Argentine ants have expanded. And they expand not just in, say, urban areas, but along certain natural habitats and one that they really like is the riparian habitat. So if you look along rivers and streams that are near urban areas, they're getting invaded by Argentine ants. And when they do, most native ants just disappear. This is a very tough aggressive ant and the mellow California ants can't handle an aggressive invader from South America. So they just disappear."
Ward related that ants live in long-lived colonies with (1) cooperative brood care (2) overlapping generations and (3) reproductive division of labor, the hallmarks of eusocial behavior. He also pointed out:
- A typical ant colony contains a reproductive queen, numerous non-reproductive workers and brood (eggs, larvae, pupae)
- Colonies of ants can be thought of as superorganisms: tightly integrated and cooperative entities with complex systems of communication and division of labor (castes)
The Bohart Museum's arts-and-crafts activity will be to create paper ant headbands. "The current version has serrated mandibles, but people can go free form, too," said Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator. "We're hoping for a colony of visitors with red headbands."
The Bohart Museum, directed by UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens, plus a petting zoo (including Madagascar hissing cockroaches, stick insects and tarantulas) and a gift shop, stocked with insect-themed t-shirts, hoodies, jewelry, posters, books, and collecting equipment.
Founded in 1946, the Bohart is open to the public Mondays through Thursdays, from 8 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 5 p.m. More information is available on the Bohart website at https://bohart.ucdavis.edu or by emailing bmuseum@ucdavis.edu.