- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
DAVIS--What to do the day before Moth’ers Day?
The Bohart Museum of Entomology is planning an open house themed Moth’ers Day, featuring moths, from 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, May 11.
The event, free and open to the public, will take place in Room 1124 of Academic Surge on Crocker Lane, UC Davis campus.
The focus is on moths, most of which are nocturnal, unlike butterflies which fly during the day. Moths of all sizes, shapes, colors and patterns will be displayed, said Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator.
Scientists will explain the difference between moths and butterflies.
The Bohart Museum, directed by Lynn Kimsey, professor of entomology at UC Davis, houses a global collection of nearly eight million insect specimens and is the seventh largest insect collection in North America. It is also the home of the California Insect Survey, a storehouse of the insect biodiversity. Noted entomologist Richard M. Bohart (1913-2007) founded the museum.
Visitors can not only examine drawers of moth specimens, but also can hold such live specimens as Madagascar hissing cockroaches, a rose-haired tarantula and walking sticks.
The gift shop includes t-shirts, jewelry, insect nets, posters and books, including the newly published children’s book, “The Story of the Dogface Butterfly,” written by UC Davis doctoral candidate Fran Keller and illustrated (watercolor and ink) by Laine Bauer, a 2012 graduate of UC Davis. The 35-page book, geared toward kindergarteners through sixth graders, also includes photos by naturalist Greg Kareofelas of Davis, a volunteer at the Bohart.
The book tells the untold story of the California dogface butterfly (Zerene eurydice), Keller said. Bauer’s illustrations depict the life cycle of this butterfly and the children who helped designate it as the California state insect.
The net proceeds from the sale of this book go directly to the education, outreach and research programs of the Bohart Museum. The book can also be ordered online at http://www.bohartmuseum.com/the-story-of-the-dogface-butterfly.html.
Bohart officials schedule weekend open houses throughout the academic year so that families and others who cannot attend on the weekdays can do so on the weekends. The Bohart’s regular hours are from 9 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 5 p.m., Monday through Thursday. The insect museum is closed to the public on Fridays and on major holidays. Admission is free.
The last open house of the academic year is from 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, June 9. The theme is "How to Find Insects."
For further information, contact Yang at tabyang@ucdavis.edu or (530) 752-0493.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
DAVIS--“The Bee Team” at the University of California, Davis, has won a major award.
Five faculty members from the Department of Entomology received the coveted team award from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America (PBESA), for their collaborative work specializing in honey bees, wild bees and pollination issues through research, education and outreach. Their service to UC Davis spans 116 years.
The “Bee Team” is comprised of Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen; systematist/hymenopterist Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and professor of entomology who coordinated the development and installation of a landmark bee friendly garden; and native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology; pollination ecologist Neal Williams, assistant professor of entomology who specializes in pollination and bee biology; and biologist/apiculturist Brian Johnson, assistant professor of entomology who specializes in bee communication, bee behavior and bee health.
PBESA represents 11 states, seven U.S. territories, and parts of Canada and Mexico.
Thorp, who retired from the university in 1994, continues to work full-time on behalf of the bees, and has tallied 49 years of service to UC Davis. Mussen, who will retire in June of 2014, has provided 37 years of service; Kimsey, 24; Williams, 4 and Johnson, 2.
“The collaborative team exceptionally serves the university, the state, the nation, and indeed the world, in research, education and public service,” wrote nominator Michael Parrella, professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. “The Bee Team is really the ‘A’ team; no other university in the country has this one-of-a-kind expertise about managed bees, wild bees, pollination, bee health, bee identification, and bee preservation. Honey bee health is especially crucial. Since 2006 when the colony collapse disorder surfaced, we as a nation have been losing one-third of our bees annually. Some beekeepers are reporting 50 to 100 percent winter losses. The importance of bees cannot be underestimated: one-third of the food we eat is pollinated by bees.”
Among those lending support to The Bee Team through letters were Mary Delany, interim chair of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; AnnMaria de Grassi, director of federal policy, California Farm Bureau Federation; Christi Heintz, executive director of Project Apis m. and the Almond Board of California Task Force Liaison; and Mace Vaughn, pollinator conservation program director of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
About each team member:
Mussen, considered by his peers as one of the most respected and influential professional apiculturists in the nation, was named the California Beekeeper of the Year in 2006, won the American Association of Professional Apiculturists’ Award of Excellence in Extension Apiculture in 2007, and in 2008 he received the Distinguished Achievement Award in Extension from the Pacific Branch of the Entomological Society of America. He received the statewide Pedro Ilic Outstanding Agricultural Educator Award in 2010.
Mussen is a five-time president of the Western Apicultural Society, an organization he helped found in 1977. He's delivered the keynote addresses at the California State Beekeepers’ Association (CSBA) and at the American Honey Producers’ Association conventions. In addition, he provides leadership roles in the CSBA, the California Bee Breeders’ Association, California Farm Bureau Federation, American Honey Producers’ Association, National Honey Board, American Beekeeping Federation, American Association of Professional Apiculturists, and the Northern California Entomology Society, among others.
Mussen periodically speaks to some 20 beekeeping organizations a year, taking time from his busy schedule (often on the weekends and evenings) to travel to all parts of California and beyond. Mussen also coordinates the honey-tasting event at the annual UC Davis Picnic Day, where he encourages patrons to sample honey and ask questions.
“He is just as open to answering a question about Nosema to a beginning beekeeper or responding to a child’s question about queen bees as he is to helping a commercial beekeeper with 15,000 hives, or engaging in intricate scientific research,” colleague and entomology Extension specialist Larry Godfrey said.
Mussen, who is the UC Davis representative to the California State Apiary Board, offers input to the Department of Pesticide Regulation, particularly with the pesticide registration group. Lately he assisted U.S. beekeepers in writing letters to receive compensation from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for their CCD (colony collapse disorder) bee losses.
Mussen works closely with Cooperation Extension, California Department of Food and Agriculture, California Department of Pesticide Regulation, the California Farm Bureau Federation, researchers in the UC system, researchers at the USDA/ARS honey bee laboratories at Beltsville, Md; Baton Rouge, La.; Tucson, Ariz., Weslaco, Texas, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, among others.
Mussen serves on various committees and task forces of state and national organizations, reviews numerous manuscripts for journals; reviews annual research proposals to the California State Beekeepers’ Association, the Almond Board of California, and the National Honey Board; reviews Small Business Innovation Research applications at the federal level; and is requested to comment on promotion evaluations for university and USDA researchers.
Said Gene Brandi, legislative chairman of the California State Beekeepers’ Association: “Dr. Mussen’s service as a member of the California State Beekeepers’ Association is legendary. Any time the industry has needed Eric’s expertise at a meeting, at an industry or government hearing, to compile industry data, to write an article for a variety of publications, or for any reason whatsoever, he has always been ready, willing and more than able to accomplish the task.”
Recently, Mussen and “Bee Team” member Brian Johnson conducted experiments to determine the effects of feeding bees on a blend of sucrose syrup and high fructose corn syrup. They studied the effects of feeding colonies high doses of antibiotics, simultaneously. They are sampling bees from apparently healthy and declining colonies to see if viruses may be to blame for the dwindling bee population. And they hope to look at the use of various essential oils to reduce virus loads in honey bee colony populations.
As the former interim chair of the Department of Entomology, Kimsey spearheaded the rebuilding of the bee biology program and keyed the establishment, installation and development of the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, a half-acre bee friendly garden on Bee Biology Road. A groundbreaking ceremony took place in 2009 and a grand celebration opening on Sept. 11, 2010. The garden also serves as a demonstration garden and a research garden. The key goals of the garden are to provide bees with a year-around food source, to raise public awareness about the plight of honey bees and to encourage visitors to plant bee-friendly gardens of their own.
Kimsey also fulfilled a major role in the rebuilding of the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Biology lab. Those involved, as well as the beekeeping industry, praised her leadership, insight and determination. In this process, she reached out to industry leaders and gained their support.
In the development and establishment of the haven, Kimsey “motivated students, volunteers and donors to bring the garden to fruition, creating a demonstration to create an awareness of the diversity of pollinators and their role in the ecology of plants to benefit agriculture, urban landscapes and the enjoyment of the general public for generations to come,” said bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey.
Said Dora Sera Bailey, former director of consumer communications for Häagen-Dazs who worked with Kimsey: “The Häagen-Dazs brand is very proud and grateful for its long and strong relationship with UC Davis. It is a relationship that has come to full flower in the last several years, largely due to the vision, spirit of cooperation and commitment of Lynn Kimsey.”
- Under what contexts can native pollinators provide sufficient pollination for different crop? The answer to this question helps alleviate the stress placed on honey bees and also informs ways to more sustainably manage agricultural systems to promote biodiversity and production.
- How can we enhance habitat and diversify agricultural systems to promote managed and wild bees?
- Do pollinators interact in ways to increase the overall effectiveness of crop pollination?
This work has been carried out in agro-ecosystems in California’s Central Valley and in eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey. A continuing goal is to provide practical information that can be used to improve the long-term stability of pollination for agriculture in California, as well as promote pollinator conservation and management. Williams’ work in the East and West has helped form the base for NCRS planting guidelines to enhance pollinators in agriculture. Williams is also studying how habitat restoration affects pollinator communities and pollination. He has ongoing research with Sacramento River Project (Nature Conservancy/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) to determine whether native pollinator species and the service they provide are restored along with the vegetation that is the target of restoration.
Williams was part of an international research team that found that honey bees are more effective at pollinating almonds when other species of bees are present. The groundbreaking research was published earlier this year in the Proceedings of the Royal Society. The research, which took place in California’s almond orchards in Yolo, Colusa and Stanislaus counties, is especially important because it increases the pollination effectiveness of honey bees as demand for their pollination service grows. When blue orchard bees and wild bees are foraging in almonds with honey bees, the behavior of honey bees changes, resulting in more effective crop pollination, they found.
“My research program spans a tremendous diversity of fundamental and applied areas in pollination and bee biology,” Williams says. “It is linked by a common goal to understand mechanisms from individual to landscape scales that affect pollinator communities, populations and pollination function. One major research area in our lab is working to identify native plant materials to support managed and wild bee species in order to bolster their health, their populations and achieve greater stability of pollination in agricultural landscapes.”
“Although other colleagues in our region investigate the importance of habitat for bees, we are unique in developing methods to identify best plants for bees and then applying these methods to select the plants. Our approach involves extensive field data, original computational modeling, and controlled experimental testing. An exciting extension of this work is testing the performance of the resulting native plant mixes in real landscape. To this end we are working with over 20 different growers and landowners around the state of California and a variety of different crop types from orchard to row crop. We have helped to determine best practice for planting bee habitat, protocols for monitoring pollinator use and developed widely methods for assessing pollinator’s contribution to pollination service. We recognize the value of simultaneously supporting managed bees, such as Apis mellifera and Osmia lignaria, as well as promoting populations of diverse wild bee species. Thus, our efforts target different suites of pollinators. It is through the integration of different species in different contexts that we can achieve greater sustainable pollination. In another project we are directly quantifying the importance of diverse pollinators to promote pollination. We have shown that the presence of wild species increases the pollination effectiveness of honey bees on almond. The result offers great promise for augmenting pollination of this challenging crop.”
“Training of students at all levels is key components of my program,” says Williams, who has 26 students working in his lab. “I integrate multiple undergraduates into my own projects and in addition host those working with graduate students in the lab. I am also actively engaged in outreach/extension education with growers, beekeepers, conservation organizations, county and state agencies and the public to promote biodiversity conservation and work to enhance pollination in natural and agricultural systems. We have led training sessions about native pollinators for NRCS and others in multiple seasons, hosted the most recent meeting of the Orchard Bee Association, contributed to farmer field days, provided master gardener sessions on native pollinators and developed outreach materials. Our latest project is developing a list of region specific native plants to support honey bees and wild pollinators, this effort involves collaboration with others on the Bee Team and beyond. “
Williams is an important part of the USDA’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) meetings. He is co-project director of Aspire Project: Augmenting Specialty Crop Pollination Through Integrated Research and Education for Bees, a coordinated agricultural project funded by SCRI. Williams serves as the project leader for habitat enhancement for bees and as a co-leader of a project seeking alternative managed bees for almonds.
Last year he was one of the featured speakers at the International Symposium on Pollinator Conservation in Fukuoka, Japan. His talk on “Bee Life History and Resource Distributions Determine Population and Community Responses to Agricultural Landscape Change” explored agricultural landscape change and the role of bee life history in predicting and understanding responses of bee communities.
Thorp is skilled in insect classification, general entomology, natural history of insects, field entomology, California insect diversity and pollination ecology. He is a member of 10 professional societies including the International Society of Hymenopterists. He is the regional co-chair of the North America section of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Bumblebee Specialist Group. IUCN is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental organization.
Thorp is deeply engrossed in identifying bees for research projects, including that of UC Berkeley conservation biologist Claire Kremen, a McArthur Fellow studying wild bees. Overall, he has identified more than 170,000 bees since his retirement in 1994, usually averaging at least 10,000 a year. He is also heavily involved with research, education and public outreach activities at the Bohart Museum, with Department of Entomology and other entities.
Thorp does research at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven. He has monitored the bee population since it was an open field. Over the last three years, Robbin has identified more than 80 species of bees—and counting--in the garden alone; these include bumble bees, carpenter bees and sweat bees.
An authority on Western bumble bees, Thorp delivered a talk on “Western North America Bumble Bees in Peril” to the Smithsonian in June 2009. His bumble bee research and his drive to save bees from extinction are two of his projects known nationally and internationally. He is the world authority on Franklin’s bumble bee, a bee feared extinct and known to habitat a small area in southern Oregon and northern California. He teamed with the Xerces Society to successfully fight a battle to include the bee on the threatened and endangered species list. He is now working to “save the bees” found in the Midwest and East Coast.
Thorp was honored for his work when he received the 2010-2011 Edward A. Dickson Emeriti Professorship, a high honor for UC Davis retired faculty. He delivers many talks, both scientific and for the lay audience, on wild bees and pollinator habitat. In addition to threatened or endangered bumble bees, his expertise includes vernal pool bees.
Johnson works closely with the California State Beekeepers Association (statewide, California has 500,000 colonies) and just received a CSBA grant to study “Testing Feeding Methods for Maximizing the Growth and Health of Honey Bee Colonies.” He is involved in graduate teaching/advising and undergraduate lab teaching. He is teaching a UC Davis graduate seminar on Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) and just completed teaching a course on honey bee communication for a freshman seminar. Johnson presented a talk on honey bee communication at the inaugural event of the UC Davis Honey and Pollinator Center; a lecture on “The Study of Social Insects” to the UC Davis Animal Behavior Core Graduate Group; a seminar at Howard University, Washington D.C. on the “Organization and Evolution of Honey Bee Societies”; and a talk on “Task Allocation in Middle-Age Honey Bees.” He also addressed the California Department of Food and Agriculture on “Roles of Self-Organization in Collective Decision Making” and discussed “Future Research Directions at UC Davis” at a CSBA meeting.
DAVIS--The Bohart Museum of Entomology will celebrate honey bees, native bees in California, and bees found worldwide at two concurrent open houses set from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15. The theme is “Flower Lovers: The Bees.”
One open house will be at the Bohart Museum of Entomology, 1124 Academic Surge on Crocker Lane, formerly California Avenue (off La Rue Road) and the other at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven on Bee Biology Road, off Hutchison Drive/Hopkins Road, west of the central campus.
The Bohart Museum, part of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, is arranging both events and “we’re hoping people will travel from one to the other and participate in both,” said Tabatha Yang, the Bohart Museum’s education and outreach coordinator.
Tables at the Bohart Museum will feature craft activities and a display of bees from all over the world. Among those participating will be Yang; senior museum scientist Steve Heydon; and graduate student Matan Shelomi. The museum, directed by Lynn Kimsey, professor of entomology at UC Davis, houses more than seven million insect specimens, and is also home to a live “petting zoo,” including Madagascar hissing cockroaches, walking sticks and rose-haired tarantula.
At the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven the agenda will include a recognition ceremony for Derek Tully, 17, of Davis at 1:30 p.m. As his Eagle Scout project, he planned, organized and supervised the building of the haven fence, saving the Department of Entomology at least $24,000, according to Kimsey. He began the project April 2 and completed it Sept. 7.
The haven open house will include a display table on native bees, staffed by Neal Williams, assistant professor of entomology and graduate student Katharina Ullmann; honey bees, headed by staff research associate Billy Synk; and a crafts table, staffed by the UC Davis Entomology Club. Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, a noted honey bee expert, will field questions.
Christine Casey of the UC Davis Department of Entomology will guide a tour of the haven from 2 to 2:30 p.m.
The Bohart Museum of Entomology, founded in 1946 and named for noted entomologist Richard M. Bohart, is dedicated to teaching, research and service. It is open to the public from 9 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 5 p.m., Monday through Thursday. It is closed to the public on Fridays. Admission is free. Weekend open houses are scheduled once a month.
More information is available on the Bohart Museum website at http://bohart.ucdavis.edu/or by contacting Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator at tabyang@ucdavis.edu or (530) 752-0493.
--Kathy Keatley Garvey
Communications specialist
UC Davis Department of Entomology
(530) 754-6894
It's listed as one of the Sacramento Bee's top 10 garden destinations in the Sacramento/Yolo area.
Reporter Debbie Arrington wrote that “Local gardeners don't have to go far to find inspiration. Our region is dotted with memorable public gardens that offer beauty and food for thought along with relaxation. A stroll through any of these destinations may turn up a new favorite shrub or eye-catching flower. In these gardens, you can see firsthand how thousands of plants have adapted to our climate and often low-water conditions. Best of all: Admission is free.”
The Top Ten:
- UC Davis Arboretum, UC Davis campus
- Historic City Cemetery, 1000 Broadway, Sacramento
- University Arboretum, J Street and Carlson Drive, on the campus of California State University, Sacramento, 6000 J St., Sacramento
- Charles C. Jensen Botanical Garden, 8520 Fair Oaks, Blvd. Carmichael
- WPA Rock Garden, Land Park, next to the amphitheater off Land Park Drive at 15th Street, Sacramento
- Water-Efficient Landscape demonstration garden, Fair Oaks Park, 8100 Temple Park Road, Fair Oaks
- Capitol Park, 11th and L streets, Sacramento
- World Peace Rose Garden, 15th Street and Capitol Avenue, Sacramento
- Frederick N. Evans Memorial Rose Garden, McKinley Park, H Street between Alhambra Boulevard and 33rd Street, Sacramento
- Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, Bee Biology Road, UC Davis
The Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, a half-acre bee friendly garden located on Bee Biology Road, next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility was planted in 2009 during the tenure of Lynn Kimsey, then interim chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. A public opening celebration took place Sept. 11, 2010.
A 19-member group of devoted volunteers, led by coordinator Melissa “Missy” (Borel) Gable and team leader Mary Patterson of Davis, kept the garden beautiful. The 19 volunteers chalked up 5,229 hours of service between May 2010 and Feb. 15, 2013. At the $10 minimum wage, that would have amounted to $52,290. The volunteers completed their duties at the haven on Feb. 15.
Gable, former program manager of the California Center for Urban Horticulture (CCUH) at UC Davis, accepted a position on Feb. 11 as the public engagement manager at the UC Davis Arboretum. While at CCUH, she coordinated the design competition for the haven, helped develop the garden through donations and an outreach program, and recruited and coordinated additional campus programs to add educational and art content to the garden. She worked closely with the volunteer crew, who tended the garden on Friday mornings.
In addition to Gable and Patterson, the gardeners included Randy Beaton, Tyng Tyng Cheng, Judy Hills, Carolyn Hinshaw, Kristen Kolb, Marion London, Kate McDonald, Kathy Olson, Nancy Stone, Janet Thatcher, Laura Westrup, Nyla Wiebe, Gary Zamzow, and Kili Bong and son Evan Marczak, all of Davis, and Laurie Hildebrandt and Joe Frankenfield, Woodland.
Said Mary Patterson: "Since I was a student at UC Davis, I have always enjoyed the Olive Drive part of campus. Working at the Bee Garden was a great opportunity for our gardening group. We worked hard to make a special place for the bees and the community. We hope the garden will continue to thrive."
Carolyn Hinshaw called the experience rewarding and educational: “Several of us started gardening here when the garden was still struggling to get established --so it has been very rewarding and educational to experience its transformation to a plant haven for bees, butterflies and many other insects.”
The gardeners also enjoyed discussing plants and insects with the UC Davis Department of Entomology faculty and staff. Native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology, monitors the garden and has detected more than 75 species of bees since its inception.
“My time volunteering at the garden was not entirely altruistic,” Laurie Hildebrandt said. “I took away more than I gave. I learned so much about the plants that pollinators adore, and how to care for those plants, by working with smart and friendly people. Plus, a huge bonus to being in the garden on Friday mornings was having the chance to talk with Robbin Thorp and Kathy Keatley Garvey (communications specialist for the Department of Entomology) about bees and the other insects that visit there. I have one hive at home, too, so when I had a potential problem with it, Robbin introduced me to Kim Fondrk in Bee Biology where I was given excellent advice. My time working there resulted in not only helping with garden maintenance for the greater good of the bees but gaining knowledge from amazing gardeners and insect experts.”
Marion London considered working in the garden an honor. “Every time I drove to volunteer at the bee garden I experienced the exhilaration of going into open agricultural space. As a volunteer working in the space that has become a garden, and watching the transformation of this garden area was an honor. The volunteer gardeners worked as a team using their particular knowledge, muscle and wit. Visitors came by as we worked in the bee garden, and appreciated the garden and its purpose.”
Randy Beaton described the volunteer work as cathartic and rewarding. “I started gardening at the Bee Haven in August of 2011 as a newcomer to the area,” she said. “It was so cathartic to find a group of like minded people and get to 'play' at the lovely venue that it helped my transition to California living. The garden is so vital and alive that it's been a pleasure to keep it going and watch it thrive. The proof is there to see and watch as all the bees (more than 75 species), butterflies and birds sample gifts from the garden. It's very rewarding to be able to see the results of our hard work and we learned something new almost every time we were out there. And the gardeners.... It was also fun to work with the group--we chatted about gardening and other things and we laughed a lot so the hard work seemed easy. It was just great to share the work with others who also shared a passion for gardening and pollinators with me! “
Gary Zamzow not only gardened, but was the "resident bumble bee watcher." He continues to capture images of bumble bees and other insects in the garden.
Art in the garden is also big draw. The UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program, directed by Diane Ullman and Donna Billick, has installed bee art in the garden, including two bee box towers at the entrance; a six-foot long ceramic mosaic bee sculpture by Billick; native bee condos; and ceramic mosaic planters. The work is by students, faculty, staff and area residents.
Ullman is the associate dean for undergraduate academic programs in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and a professor and former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. Billick is a self-described “rock artist” with two degrees from UC Davis.
The fence circling the garden is the Eagle Scout project of Derek Tully of Boy Troop 111, Davis. He planned and built the post-and-rail fence with the help of a 33-member volunteer crew that he organized and supervised. Tully launched the project April 2, 2012 and completed it Sept. 7, 2012.
The financial backing from Häagen-Dazs originated with a news story written by Kathy Keatley Garvey about bee research under way at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility. After reading the news story, Häagen-Dazs officials approached the department chair and donated funds for the garden and for the Häagen-Dazs Postdoctoral Scholar, awarded to insect virus researcher Michelle Flenniken. She is now a research assistant professor in the Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology, Montana State University (MSU), Bozeman.
Häagen-Dazs ice cream initially committed $125,000 to the UC Davis Department of Entomology for the garden project. This encompassed site planning, preparation and the design competition. Since then, the brand has generously donated more funds. Cagwin & Dorward Landscape Contractors served as the landscape contractors. The list of other donors is at http://beebiology.ucdavis.edu/HAVEN/donors.html.
Winning the international design competition was the Sausalito team of landscape architects Donald Sibbett and Ann F. Baker, interpretative planner Jessica Brainard and exhibit designer Chika Kurotaki. The blueprint is online at http://beebiology.ucdavis.edu/HAVEN/honeybeehaven.html.
The garden is open from dawn to dusk for self-guided tours. Admission is free. For guided tours, which began March 1, groups and organizations can contact Christine Casey at cacasey@ucdavis.edu. The fee for the guided tours is $4 per person.
Anyone who wishes to volunteer in the garden can download an application at http://beebiology.ucdavis.edu/HAVEN/index.html. Volunteers must be at least 18, Casey said.
Caption
The gardeners at the haven: Front row (from left) Kili Bong, Davis; Tyng Tyng Cheng, Davis; Missy Gable, Davis; Evan Marczak, 6, Davis (son of Kili Bong); Mary Patterson, Davis; Kristen Kolb, Davis, and mascot Olive. In back (from left) are Nancy Stone, Davis; Laurie Hildebrandt, Woodland; Billy Synk, staff associate research associate and beekeeper at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility; Marion London, Davis; Judy Hills, Davis; and Laura Westrup, Davis. Not pictured: Kathy Olson, Nyla Wiebe, Gary Zamzow, Randy Beaton, Janet Thatcher and Kate McDonald, all of Davis, and Joe Frankenfield, Woodland. The haven gardeners are now working at the UC Davis Arboretum at the plant sales nursery, pollinator garden, and at Nature's Gallery. Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
--Kathy Keatley Garvey
Communications specialist
UC Davis Department of Entomology
(530) 754-6894
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The declining honey bee population and the increasing need for honey bee research prompted her to raise $733 and donate it to the Department of Entomology, University of California, Davis. To earn the money, she sold jars of honey, baked goods featuring honey, beeswax candles, olive oil, soap and a self-penned booklet about the plight of honey bees.
Sheridan and her parents, Craig and Annika Miller and sister, Annelie, 8, recently traveled from their home in Marin County to the department's Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road to deliver an oversized check and to take a tour of the facility.
“It's very thoughtful and generous of a little girl to think of the plight of the honey bees and to raise funds for research,” said Lynn Kimsey, professor and chair of the Department of Entomology and director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology. “We are overwhelmed.”
Said Cooperative Extension Apiculturist Eric Mussen, a member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology since 1976: “I really appreciate the fact that so many members of the general public have become concerned about the plight of honey bees. I am particularly impressed by individuals such as Sheridan who have devoted so much time and effort in really trying to improve the health and longevity of the honey bees.”
The young author, a fifth grader, sold the booklet for $7, with all proceeds going for honey bee research at the Laidlaw facility.
“I learned about bees in the fourth grade and then did research on the Internet,” Sheridan said. She gleaned information from the UC Davis Department of Entomology Web site (http://entomology.ucdavis.edu/) and the Haagen-Dazs Web site (www.helpthehoneybees.com), launched in February 2008 to create awareness for the plight of the honey bee. A neighbor provided her with honey to sell. At a bake sale, Sheridan raised funds by selling a variety of food and non-food items and also took orders for her booklets. Sister Annelie assisted with the fundraising.
“Honey bees pollinate delicious fruits, vegetables and even nuts,” Sheridan wrote in her booklet. “If they were to disappear, our food source would consist of wheat, rice and corn.”
She included an Albert Einstein quote: “If bees were to disappear off the surface of the earth, mankind would have but four years to live.”
Her father, a San Francisco-based lawyer, and her mother, a tutor and former teacher, were delighted to see their daughter carry through with her project. “She learned a lot about honey bees in the process,” Annika said.
The Millers learned even more about honey bees on their trip to UC Davis. Bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey, manager of the Laidlaw facility, and Kimsey guided them through the Laidlaw facility and apiary.
Cobey opened a hive and showed the Millers the queen bee, worker bees (females) and drones and let them sample honey. Cobey also broke off a chunk of recently drawn beeswax comb for them to examine and take home.
Sheridan presented Kimsey with a copy of her booklet, which points out that “UC Davis has been actively researching honey bees for 76 years.”
The booklet lists 20 bee facts, including:
--The honey bee has been around for 30 million years
--The average honey bee will only make one-twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in its lifetime
--It takes about 556 workers to gather one pound of honey from about 2 million flowers
--Worker honey bees are females, live 6 to 8 weeks and do all the work
--Honey bees will usually travel only 3 miles from their hive
The recipes in the booklet showcase honey as a key ingredient. They include Honey Oatmeal Muffins, Honey Crispies, Honey Banana Bread, Honey Nut Bread, and Honey and Lemon Green Tea Cupcakes and Honey Breadsticks.
If you bake with honey, Sheridan wrote, “please buy only local, organic honey that has not been shipped. Thank you.”
Sheridan now hopes others will join the cause to “save the bees.” Her booklet lists ways to help: Plant a bee friendly garden; try buying only organic fruits and vegetables; never use pesticides for gardens; and become a backyard beekeeper.
A backyard beekeeper? That's her next goal.
“I'd like a hive for my backyard,” Sheridan said.