- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The seminars, to be held from 12:10 to 1 p.m. in 122 Briggs, begin April 2 and continue through June 4.
More information is pending: the title of the talks, abstracts, biosketches, and photos.
April 2:
Maryann Frazier, senior extension associate specializing in honey bees, Penn State University.
April 9:
Edwin Lewis, professor and vice chair, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology
April 16:
John Jaenike, professor and chair, Department of Biology, University of Rochester, New York
April 23:
Elizabeth Tibbetts, associate professor, Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
April 30:
Eric Lonsdorf, visiting assistant professor of biology at Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, Pa.
May 7:
Riccardo Bommarco, professor, Department of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
May 14:
Leithen M'Gonigle, postdoctoral fellow, Claire Kremen lab, Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley
May 21:
There will be NO noonhour seminar.
May Berenbaum, professor and department head, Department of Entomology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign will present two evening lectures as part of the Storer Lectureship for Life Sciences.
- The first is a public lecture on Tuesday, May 20 on "Bees in Crisis: Colony Collapse, Honey Laundering and Other Problems Bee-Setting American Apiculture" at 4:10 p.m. in Ballrooms A and B of the UC Davis Conference Center, 550 Alumni Lane.
- The second is a scientific lecture on Wednesday, May 21 on "Sex and the Single Parsnip: Coping with Florivores and Pollinators in Two Hemispheres." This will take place at 4:10 p.m. in Ballrooms A and B of the UC Davis Conference Center.
May 28:
Andrea Lucky, evolutionary biologist and biodiversity scientist, Department of Entomology and Nematology, University Florida, Gainesville (and UC Davis alumnus; doctorate in entomology, Phil Ward lab)
June 4:
Katharina Ullmann, graduate student, Neal Williams lab, Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis
Under the direction of professor James R. Carey, plans call for all the seminars to be recorded for later posting on UCTV.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
News Brief: March 16, 2013
The New York Times' report focuses on how the state "handled Mefly scares going back more than three decades," wrote Clyde Haberman.
The article begins:
"Ceratitis capitata. To a Muggle's ears, it sounds like an incantation from a Hogwarts wizard. If only the matter were whimsical.
Ceratitis capitata may be better known by its nonscientific name: the Mediterranean fruit fly, or Medfly to its friends. Only the Medfly has no friends, certainly not among fruit and vegetable growers, and certainly not among anyone interested in reasonably priced produce undamaged by these insects, whose eggs, hatched under the skin of, say, a tomato or a peach, develop into larvae that feast on the pulp. California, the nation's fruit basket, with a $40-billion-a-year agricultural industry, feels especially vulnerable. How that state has handled Medfly scares going back more than three decades is the focus of the latest installment of Retro Report, a series of documentary videos that take a second look at major news stories from the past."
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Seybold, an affiliate of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, is a chemical ecologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service's Pacific Southwest Research Station in Davis.
The article, written by Dinsa Sachan, begins: “If you want to keep insects off your crops, you have a couple of options: Spray the plants with pesticides or confuse the bugs with pheromones. The latter—chemicals used by insects to communicate—are more environmentally friendly, but manufacturing them involves harmful chemicals. Now, scientists have devised a method that enables them to produce pheromones from plants themselves, a safer and potentially more economical approach.”
Seybold, who was not involved in the study, was asked to comment on the research and noted: “The work is a ‘breakthrough' and ‘a wave of the future.' It will change the way that commercial pheromone outfits do business and will significantly enhance the quality and potentially lower the cost of the products that they provide."
The research, led by Christer Löfstedt, a chemical ecologist at Lund University in Sweden, dealt with the genetic modification of plants to “make components components of pheromones produced by the bird cherry ermine moth (Yponomeuta evonymella) and the orchard ermine moth (Y. padella),” wrote Sachan. “In the wild, female moths emit these sex pheromones to attract male suitors."
The research, "A Plant Factory for Moth Pheromone Production," is published in Nature Communications. Abstract: Moths depend on pheromone communication for mate finding and synthetic pheromones are used for monitoring or disruption of pheromone communication in pest insects. Here we produce moth sex pheromone, using Nicotiana benthamiana as a plant factory, by transient expression of up to four genes coding for consecutive biosynthetic steps. We specifically produce multicomponent sex pheromones for two species. The fatty alcohol fractions from the genetically modified plants are acetylated to mimic the respective sex pheromones of the small ermine moths Yponomeuta evonymella and Y. padella. These mixtures are very efficient and specific for trapping of male moths, matching the activity of conventionally produced pheromones. Our long-term vision is to design tailor-made production of any moth pheromone component in genetically modified plants. Such semisynthetic preparation of sex pheromones is a novel and cost-effective way of producing moderate to large quantities of pheromones with high purity and a minimum of hazardous waste.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
As president, he will serve a one-year term, 2014 to 2015. He succeeds Diana Johnson of New Jersey, who served as a forensic serologist with the New Jersey State Police for seven years and now teaches forensics.
Kimsey, active in NAFEA since joining the association in 2002, will conduct the 12th annual meeting, which takes place July 14-18 in Petersburg, Fla. Kimsey hosted a NAFEA conference at Davis in 2004. He is on the conference committee for 2105 and is planning another Davis conference in 2017.
NAFE promotes the development of forensic entomology throughout North America and encourages co-operation with other similar international bodies. Its mission is to provide a cooperative arena for forensic entomologists to interact and collaborate in ways that enhance the science, moral and ethical foundation, and reputation of forensic entomology.
Kimsey, a UC Davis product who joined the faculty in 1989, received both his bachelor's degree and doctorate in entomology from UC Davis. He coordinates and serves as the master advisor of the animal biology major program at UC Davis, which includes some 400 students. He also advises the UC Davis Entomology Club.
Kimsey's research interests include public health entomology; arthropods of medical importance; zoonotic disease; biology and ecology of tick-borne pathogens; tick feeding behavior; and biochemistry. His research includes the nuisance flies on Alcatraz Island that plaque staff and tourists. A former guard at the penitentiary nicknamed him “The Fly Man of Alcatraz,” during the 2007 Alcatraz Reunion.
Kimsey was selected the outstanding educator of 2013 in the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences by the Associated Students of UC Davis.
A New York City firm, Organic Pest Control, singled out 10 “bug” or entomology blogs and 40 “pest control” blogs for international awards.
Geographically, the authors range from California to Singapore to the UK. "These sites were shown to have valuable, fresh and frequently updated content that is helpful in both entomology and the pest control industry," a spokesperson said.
Alex Wild's Myrmecos blog and Kathy Keatley Garvey's Bug Squad blog were among the top 10 bug blogs. Wild is an Illinois-based entomologist and noted insect photographer who received his doctorate from UC Davis, working with ant specialist Phil Ward, professor of entomology in the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. Wild is especially known for his ant photos.
Garvey, who holds two degrees from Washington State University, is the communications specialist for the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. She began writing the Bug Squad blog, which appears on the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) website, on Aug. 6, 2008, at the urging of UC ANR's Pam Kan-Rice, assistant director of News and Information Outreach. An avid writer, editor and photographer, Garvey has posted a blog every night, Monday through Friday, since launching it. She writes it for educational purposes.
The top 10 “bug" blogs as announced by the NYC firm:
Bug Girl's Blog (Charismatic Minifauna)
This blogger has a PhD in entomology (insect study) and is not afraid to share her fascination through the blog. Another standout feature of the blog is her knowledge of how to control insect populations without the use of pesticides. Top posts include “How to Inspect Your Hotel Room for Bed Bugs” and “Ask an Entomologist.” (Note: this is by Gwen Pearson, who for a long time, never revealed her true identity, not even at an Entomological Society of America meeting.)
Myrmecos
Visit here for a blog by Illinois-based biologist and photographer Alex Wild. The blog's name is derived from the Greek word for ant and contains Alex's musings on the little creatures that share our planet. The galleries are a must see given Alex's love of both insects and his talent with a camera.
Insects in the City
Mike Merchant has served as entomology specialist for Texas AgriLife Extension since 1989. His areas of specialty involve research on the insects that effect people including spiders, scorpions, fire ants, termites, and others. Get pest control from an academic point of view by stopping at his blog.
6legs2many
This blog is named after a quote from Joseph Krutch on the human standpoint on insects. Alison also fills her blog with other discoveries on insects and closer looks at them. Everything from ants to wolf spiders are featured.
Butterflies of Singapore
Because some bugs can be downright beautiful, there is this blog. Get a look at “nature's flying jewels” without ever leaving your home. With entries dating back to 2007, there are loads of butterflies to see.
Living With Insects Blog
Jonathan Neal also has a Ph.D in entomology and teaches at Purdue University. His blog is devoted to the intersection of people and insects. Subjects such as fire ants, bees, and many more are often discussed.
Beetles In The Bush
Ted C. MacRae is a research entomologist by vocation and beetle taxonomist by avocation. With entries on loads of common and uncommon household pests, his focus is of course the beetle. However, you can also find entries on items such as spiders, reptiles, and most recently, Bichos Argentinos.
Urban Dragon Hunters
These bloggers standout for targeting their insect research and blog towards the largely ignored urban areas. Located in Wayne County, Michigan, they have recorded 50 new species of odonata, or dragonflies. Stop by to see which and learn more about them.
Bug Squad
Bug Squad is the blog of Kathy Keatley Garvey, communications specialist, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. This blog, launched in 2008, is part of the University of California's Agricultural and Natural Resources website. Check for the latest research and other information.
What's That Bug?
Also known as The Bugman, Daniel Marlos is the author of “The Curious World of Bugs.” With a healthy pest-free garden in Los Angeles, he is free to explore his love of bugs, as well as share useful pest control tips. Be sure not to miss specialty posts on just about every insect in the U.S.
Here's a list of the top 50 blogs.
