The UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology's bee garden is the first on the list of the UC Davis Staff Assembly's "2022-23 Aggie Explorations" tours.

UC Davis staff are invited to register and participate on the Tuesday, Sept. 20 tour of the half-acre bee garden, known as the UC Davis Bee Haven. It is located next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road, west of the UC Davis campus. The event takes place from noon to 1 p.m. and is open only to staff. 

UC Extension apiculturist Elina Lastro Niño of the Department of Entomology and Nematology serves the faculty director of the garden, and Christine Casey is the academic program management officer.

The garden was planted in the fall of 2019 under the direction of interim department chair Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology. Häagen-Dazs was the primary donor. (See timeline and history of the garden.)

"The Honey Bee Haven will be a pollinator paradise," Kimsey related in December 2008. "It will provide a much needed, year-round food source for our bees at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility. We anticipate it also will be a gathering place to inform and educate the public about bees. We are grateful to Haagen-Dazs for its continued efforts to ensure bee health."

The garden, Kimsey said, would include a seasonal variety of blooming plants that will provide a year-round food source for honey bees. It would be a living laboratory supporting research into the nutritional needs and natural feeding behaviors of honey bees and other insect pollinators. She added that visitors would be able to glean ideas on how to establish their own bee-friendly gardens and help to improve the nutrition of bees in their own backyards.

UC Davis Staff Assembly has scheduled five campus tours as part of its "A Taste of UC Davis," commemorating the UC Davis ranking as the nation's leading school in agriculture. The tours are open to staff only.

In addition to the UC Davis Bee Haven, venues include (see updates here):

• UC Davis Brewing Lab
  Thursday, Oct. 27, Noon to 1 p.m.
  
  
• The Pantry
  Thursday, Nov. 17, Noon to 1 p.m.
  
  
• UC Davis Student Farm
  Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023, Noon to 1 p.m.
  
  
• Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science
  Wednesday, Feb. 22, Noon to 1 p.m.
  
  
• UC Davis Meat Laboratory
  Date pending
  
  
• UC Davis Coffee Center
  Date pending
  
  
• UC Noel-Nordfelt Animal Science Goat Dairy and Creamery
  Date pending

"We are currently recruiting participants for our Breakfast with the Chancellor series!" noted Scott Loewen-Towner, UC Davis Staff Asssembly coordinator, conference and event services.  The Breakfast with the Chancellor program is a unique opportunity for staff to meet with the Chancellor and fellow campus leaders to discuss topics that impact staff. Through this program, we invite staff to share ideas on how to improve processes, increase revenue, implement solutions to challenges experienced by staff, and more. Learn more and submit your interest form to attend Breakfast with the Chancellor." 

 

The Celebration of Life and Legacy for UC Extension apiculturist emeritus Eric Mussen, held Aug. 28 in the Putah Creek Lodge, UC Davis, drew a capacity crowd who shared and applauded all facets of his life: family man, bee scientist,  athlete, angler, birder,  photographer, humorist and a singer (doo wop).

UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal produced and livestreamed the webinar, now posted on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Kj5NuQ_rBuo. 

Dr. Mussen, an internationally known 38-year California Cooperative Extension apiculturist and an invaluable member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology faculty, died Friday, June 3 at age 78 from liver cancer. Known to all as “Eric,” he joined the UC Davis entomology department in 1976. Although he retired in 2014, he continued his many activities until a few weeks prior to his death. For nearly four decades, he drew praise as “the honey bee guru,” “the pulse of the bee industry" and as "the go-to person" when consumers, scientists, researchers, students, and the news media sought answers about honey bees.

See more information and images from the celebration on the Aug. 29th post of the Bug Squad blog.

The committee included Kathy Keatley Garvey, communications specialist, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology; Professor Leal of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology and a former chair of the then Department of Entomology; Nora Orozco, chief administrative officer, Phoenix Cluster, Department of Entomology and Nematology and the Department of Plant Pathology; Sabrina Oranchek, academic personnel specialist, Phoenix Cluster; Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator, Bohart Museum of Entomology; and Amina Harris, director of the UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center. 

The deadline to RSVP for the Celebration of Life and Legacy for internationally known honey bee authority, Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, is Monday, Aug. 1.

The memorial is set from 4 to 6 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 28 in the Putah Creek Lodge, 685 Putah Creek Lodge Drive. To RSVP, access https://ericmussencelebrationofli.rsvpify.com.  For those who cannot attend in person, UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, and a former chair of the Department of Entomology, is generously donating his time and talents to do a live Zoom webinar. Registration is underway here at https://bit.ly/3czl5Am; no deadline to register. It also will be on YouTube.

Dr. Mussen, a 38-year California Cooperative Extension apiculturist died Friday, June 3 from liver cancer, after a diagnosis several days before. He was 78. (See https://bit.ly/3ou1O5W)

The tentative program:

• Introductory remarks by administrators, including UC Davis Chancellor Gary May
• Speakers from UC Davis, the bee industry and almond industry
• Memory table 
• PowerPoint presentation of images
• Frank Fox will emcee the doo wop musical performances. Tune Up, a Davis-based doo wop group directed by Bill Cavins, will perform.  Eric enjoyed singing with the Davis doo wop groups.
• A honey bee observation hive, compliments of Extension apiculturist Elina Lastro Niño, director of the California Master Beekeeper Program
• Light refreshments, including a bee-themed cake.

The National Honey Board is donating honey bee pins, and Amina Harris, director of the Honey and Pollination Center, will provide honey straws.

Dr. Mussen, known to all as "Eric,”  joined the UC Davis entomology department in 1976. Although he retired in 2014, he continued his many activities until a few weeks prior to his death. For nearly four decades, he drew praise as “the honey bee guru,” “the pulse of the bee industry" and "the go-to person" when consumers, scientists, researchers, students, and the news media sought answers about honey bees. Join us to celebrate his life and legacy.

Dr. Mussen worked with everyone interested in honey bees--from 4-H beekeepers to large-scale commercial beekeeping operations. For years, he volunteered his expertise for the National 4-H Beekeeping Essay Competition sponsored by the Foundation for the Preservation of Honey Bees. He chaired the California-level contest and judged the entries. 

Family and friends suggest memorial contributions be made to the California State 4-H Beekeeping Program, with a note, "Eric Mussen Memorial Fund." Mary Ciriceillo, director of development for the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, said checks may be made out to the California 4-H Foundation and mailed to:  

The Bohart Museum of Entomology is celebrating National Moth Night on Saturday, July 30 from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.--both indoors in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building at 555 Crocker Lane, and outdoors, within a short walking distance.

After a two-year hiatus due toCOVID, it's back by popular demand, said Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator for the Bohart Museum. 

It's free, family friendly and open to the public. Inside, visitors will see the Bohart's special moth collection, and outside, visitors will see moths and other insects land on the hanging white sheet of the blacklighting display, comprised of an  ultraviolet (UV) light, and a generator. 

The Bohart collection includes the Atlas moth, Attacus atlas, the world's largest moth with the greatest wing area of 10 to 12 inches. The Atlas is found in the tropical and subtropical forests of Southeast Asia.

Another large moth on display will be the "bat moth" or "black witch" (Ascalapha odorata), found in Central America, South America, Bahamas and parts of the southwestern United States. In Mexican and Caribbean folklore, it is considered a harbinger of death. The insect played a role in the movie, "Silence of the Lambs" but the name was changed to "Death's-head Hawkmoth."

Folks are invited to bring photos or moth specimens from their house, yard or neighborhood that they would like help in identifying, Yang said.

There will also be a craft activity, cookies, and "hot cocoa for anyone who needs help staying up past their bedtime," Yang quipped. 

Back in 2019, before the COVID pandemic, the blacklighting display drew at least 11 different species from five moth families: Tineidae, Tortricidae, Pyralidae, Geometridae, and Noctuidae, according to Bohart associate and "Moth Man"  John De Benedictis.

The families represented:

Family Tineidae:
Opogona omoscopa (Opogona crown borer)

Family Tortricidae: 
Clepsis peritana
Platynota stultana (omnivorous leafroller)
Cydia latiferreana (filbertworm)

Family Pyralidae: 
Achyra rantalis (garden webworm)
Ephestiodes gilvescentella (dusky raisin moth)
Cadra figuliella

Family Geometridae: 
Digrammia muscariata 

Family Noctuidae: 
Spodoptera exigua (beet armyworm)
Spodoptera praefica (western yellow-striped armyworm)
Parabagrotis formais

The Bohart Museum, directed by Lynn Kimsey, UC Davis distinguished professor of entomology, houses a worldwide collection of eight million insects. It also houses a live "petting zoo" (Madagascar hissing cockroaches, stick insects and tarantulas) and a insect-themed gift shop.

Moth Night (NMW) "celebrates the beauty, life cycles, and habitats of moths, according to the national website. “Moth-ers of all ages and abilities are encouraged to learn about, observe, and document moths in their backyards, parks, and neighborhoods."

NMW, also celebrated worldwide, is traditionally held a week in July. "NMW offers everyone, everywhere a unique opportunity to become a citizen scientist and contribute scientific data about moths," the website relates. "Through partnerships with major online biological data depositories, NMW participants can help map moth distribution and provide needed information on other life history aspects around the globe."

NMW scientists point out:

• Moths are among the most diverse and successful organisms on earth.
• Estimates show that moth species number anywhere from 150,000 to more than 500,000.
• Their colors and patterns are either dazzling or so cryptic that they define camouflage. Shapes and sizes span the gamut from as small as a pinhead to as large as an adult's hand.
• Most moths are nocturnal, and need to be sought at night to be seen--others fly like butterflies during the day.
• Finding moths can be as simple as leaving a porch light on and checking it after dark. Serious moth aficionados use special lights and baits to attract them.