It's the place to "bee" on Sunday, May 7 at the University of California, Davis.

You'll meet scientists, environmentalists and beekeepers; you can brush up on bee friendly plants; and you can learn why honey is "as good as gold."

Yes, excitement is building for the third annual UC Davis Bee Symposium, set Sunday, May 7 in the UC Davis Conference Center on Alumni Drive, officials said.

If you haven't registered yet, there's still time. Registration closes on Wednesday, May 3.

Keynote speaker of the event, sponsored by the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center and the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, is Steve Sheppard, Thurber Professor of Apiculture and chair of the Department of Entomology, Washington State University (WSU), Pullman, Wash.

Sheppard, who also heads the Apis Molecular Systematics Laboratory, will speak at 9:45 a.m. on "Bees, Mushrooms and Liquid Nitrogen--What?" His research involves improving honey bee health through breeding and alternative treatment approaches. He specializes in population genetics and evolution of honey bees, insect introductions and mechanisms of genetic differentiation.

Sheppard received his graduate degrees in entomology from the University of Illinois: his master's degree in 1979 and his doctorate in 1986.  He worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Beneficial Insects Laboratory from 1986 to 1988, and as a research entomologist at the USDA Bee Research Laboratory from 1988 to 1996 before joining the WSU faculty in 1996. He was named chair of the department in 2009.

The symposium will include speakers, displays of graduate student research posters, the latest in beekeeping equipment, books, honey, plants, "and much more," according to Amina Harris, director of the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center.

The event begins at 9 a.m. with registration and a continental breakfast.  Harris and Neal M. Williams, associate professor of entomology, will welcome the crowd at 9:30 a.m.

Santiago Ramirez, assistant professor, UC Davis Department of Evolution and Ecology, will speak on "The Evolution and Chemical Ecology of Orchid Bees" at 10:45 a.m.

Extension apiculturist Elina Niño of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology will introduce the apprentice-level California Master Beekeepers and present them with pins at 11:30. Niño coordinates the Master Beekeeper Program.

The graduate student poster presentations are at noon. The competition was open to all California university students engaged in pollinator-related research. Educational exhibits also will be spotlighted at noon.

The afternoon program includes a presentation at 1:30 p.m. on "Flowering Crops: A Tricky Treat for Bees" by researcher Maj Rundlöf, International Career Grant Fellow, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, followed by "The New FDA Rule on the Use of Antibiotics in Hives" at 2 p.m. by veterinarian Michael Karle of the Mid-Valley Veterinary Hospital, Oakland.

At 2:30 is the fast-paced and popular "Lightning Round." Each presentation will be four to six minutes long and will be followed by a question-and-answer session, Harris said.

The topics:

• "Bumble Bee Cognition in the Wild" by Felicity Muth, postdoctoral researcher, Department of Biology, University of Nevada, Reno
• "Habitat Planting for Bees," by the Neal Williams' lab, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology
• "Optical Tagging of Bees to Track Individual Movements in colonies" by Stacey Combes, assistant professor, UC Davis Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior
• "Planet Bee: Citizen Bee Projects" by Debra Tomaszewski, executive director and co-founder of the Bay Area's Planet Bee Foundation
• "Plants and Pesticides: Keeping Bees Healthy with Ornamental Horticulture" by Christine Casey, program representative, Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, UC Davis

The symposium ends with Margaret Lombard, chief executive officer of the National Honey Board, speaking at 3:45 p.m. on "Good as Gold: Growing Opportunities for the Small-Scale Honey Producer."

Winners of the Graduate Student Poster Competition will be announced at 4:15. Awards are first place, $1000; second place, $750; third, $500; and fourth, $250. 

To register, access http://honey.ucdavis.edu/events/2017-bee-symposium. Harris can be reached at aharris@ucdavis.edu for further information.

If you're a graduate student engaged in pollinator-related research at a California university, it might pay to present your research poster at the third annual UC Davis Bee Symposium, set Sunday, May 7 in the UC Davis Conference Center.

Not only will you get to showcase your research, but you might share in the $2500 in cash awarded to the winners: first place, $1000; second place, $750; third, $500; and fourth, $250.

The poster competition is part of the all-day informational symposium, themed "Keeping Bees Healthy,"  sponsored by the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center at the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, and the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.

Amina Harris, director of the Honey and Pollination Center, said participants in the research poster competition must register by April 10 (see submission form at http://honey.ucdavis.edu/events/copy_of_GraduatestudentposterSubmission2017.pdf and be present to defend their work before a panel of judges. They will receive complementary registration.

Last year UC Berkeley graduate students Sara Winsemius and Laura Ward won the poster competition with their research on "Exploring Potential Route of Neonicotinoid Exposure within Pollinator Hedgerows Adjacent to Seed-Treated Sunflower."

Other 2016 winners were:

• Second place of $750 went to UC Davis graduate student W. Cameron Jasper for his poster, "Investigating Potential Synergistic Effects of Chronic Exposure to Amitraz and Multiple Pesticides on Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Survivorship."
• Third place of $500 went to UC Davis graduate student Britney Goodrich for her poster on "Honey Bee Health: Economic Implications for Beekeepers in Almond Pollination."
• Fourth place of $250 went to UC Davis graduate student John Mola for his poster on "Fine Scale Population Genetics and Movement Ecology of the Yellow-Faced Bumble Bee (Bombus vosnesenkii).

Judges were a trio of entomologists: Dennis vanEnglesdorp, professor of entomology at the University of Maryland, College Park; Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis; and Quinn McFrederick, assistant professor of entomology, UC Riverside.

General registration for the 2017 Bee Symposium begins Wednesday, March 1 at http://honey.ucdavis.edu/events/2017-bee-symposium. Open to all interested persons, the symposium is designed for beekeepers of all experience levels, including gardeners, farmers and anyone interested in the world of pollination and bees. The event will include speakers, displays of graduate student research posters, the latest in beekeeping equipment, books, honey, plants, "and much more," Harris said.

This year's keynote speaker is Steve Sheppard, Thurber Professor of Apiculture and chair of the Department of Entomology, Washington State University, Pullman, Wash. Sheppard specializes in population genetics and evolution of honey bees, insect introductions and mechanisms of genetic differentiation. He also heads the Apis Molecular Systematics Laboratory.

Among the other speakers:

• Santiago Ramirez of the UC Davis Department of Evolution and Ecology;
• Extension apiculturist Elina Niño of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology;
• Maj Rundlöf of the Department of Biology, Lund University, Sweden, and
• Margaret Lombard, National Honey Board, based in Firestone, Colo.

The day before the symposium--Saturday, May 6--is the inaugural California Honey Festival in downtown Woodland. Coordinated by the Honey and Pollination Center and is free and open to the public.

For more information on the events, contact Amina Harris at aharris@ucdavis.edu or (530) 754-9301.

Last spring you may have seen honey bees pollinating the showy pomegranate blossoms.

The ancient fruit, first cultivated around 4000 B.C. in Persia and known as "the fruit of kings," bursts with flavor, antioxidants and medicinal qualities.

But have you ever tasted the honey? Pomegranate honey?

That will be one of the featured honeys at the California Honey Tasting event hosted by the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center from 6:30 to 8 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 20 in  the Sensory Building, Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, 392 Old Davis Road.

Amina Harris, director of the Honey and Pollination Center, says the featured honeys you'll taste are “hard-to-find: almond, savory coriander, fruity pomegranate and our ever-changing Northern California wildflower.”

At the event, each honey will be paired with its produce: almonds, cilantro and pomegranate kernels. "The wildflower will be combined with a creamy cheese," she said.

Extension apiculturist Elina L. Niño will deliver a short address on the state of bees in California, and touch on the almond pollination season.  California now grows a million acres of almonds; and each acre requires two colonies for pollination.

The Oct. 20th event is part of the World Of Honey Tasting Series. Cost is $30 for general admission; $25 for UC Davis affiliates; and $12.50 for students.  For more information and to register, access https://registration.ucdavis.edu/Item/Details/254.

If you haven't registered yet for the second annual UC Davis Bee Symposium: Keeping Bees Healthy, a daylong event focusing on bee health and best management practices, there's still time.

The event, open to the public, is set from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 7 in the UC Davis Conference Center on Alumni Lane. It will be hosted by the Honey and Pollination Center of the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, and the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.

Keynoting the symposium will be Yves Le Conte, director, French National Bee Lab, Avignon, France; and Dennis vanEngelsdorp, assistant professor of entomology at the University of Maryland and project director for the Bee Informed Partnership. 

Other speakers include assistant professors Rachel Vannette and Brian Johnson, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology; assistant professor Quinn McFrederick, Department of Entomology, UC Riverside; and professor Claire Kremen, UC Berkeley and MacArthur Foundation Fellow. The $80 general admission fee and the $20 student admission fee includes a continental breakfast, lunch and post-event reception.

Among the highlights:

9 a.m. Amina Harris, director of the Honey and Pollination Center, and Neal Williams, associate professor of the Department of Entomology and Nematology and the center's co-faculty director, will welcome the crowd and introduce the speakers.

9:15 a.m. Yves Le Conte will speak on "Honey Bees that Survive Varroa Mite in the World: What Can We Learn from the French Bees" 

10:15: Rachel Vannette will discuss "How Microbial Communities in Floral Nectar Influence Pollinator Preference and Foraging"

11:15: Claire Kremen will cover "Rediversifying Intensive Agricultural Landscapes to Promote Native Pollinators."

1:30 p.m.: Dennis van Engelsdorp will speak on "Reducing Colony Losses: Does It Take a Village?"

2:15 p.m.: Lightning Round Talks: Six-minute presentations about many different programs in the world of beekeeping

3:30 p.m.: Brian Johnson will discuss "The Importance of Division of Labor for Understanding Colony Health."

4 p.m.: Quinn McFrederick will speak on "The Bee Microblome."

In addition, a graduate student poster display and competition will take place, with the winners announced at 4:30 p.m. First place is $1000; second, $750; third, $500, and fourth, $250. A closing reception follows at 4:45 in the Good Life Garden at the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science on Old Davis Road.

To register, access the Honey and Pollination Center website or for more information, contact Amina Harris at aharris@ucdavis.edu or (530) 754-9301.

Harris promises a rewarding and educational symposium. Comments from last year's symposium included:

• "As a new beehive owner I thought the information presented was fascinating and presented in a very efficient manner. I loved every aspect of the presentations!"
• "Nice to get science, there is a lot of fuzzy thinking out there."
• "Thank you for a well-organized, thoroughly engaging and thought-provoking day."

The UC Davis Conference Center is located across from the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts.