- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
In a two-hour program, Thorp will share his extensive knowledge of bees and discuss their role as pollinators, providing food and shelter for all living things, a spokesperson said. Interested attendees will be able to learn how to create bee-friendly habitats that support colony growth.
Thorp co-authored the newly published California Bees and Blooms: A Guide for Gardeners and Naturalists with Gordon Frankie, Rollin Coville and Barbara Ertter.
Admission is free and no reservations are required. However, space is limited and those planning to attend should arrive early to get a seat.
Thorp, a faculty member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology (now the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology) from 1964 to 1994, was named the recipient of the distinguished emeriti professor award on Jan. 12 for his scholarly work and service since his retirement. He is a state, national and global authority on pollination ecology, ecology and systematics of honey bees, bumble bees, vernal pool bees, conservation of bees, contribution of native bees to crop pollination, and bees of urban gardens and agricultural landscapes.
Rush Ranch is about 2-1/4 miles south of Highway 12, at 3521 Grizzly Island Road in Suisun City. Directions and a map may be found at www.rushranch.net or at www.solanolandtrust.org. For more information, call (707)422-4491 or (707) 432-0150.
Rush Ranch, a 2,070-acre open space area, is bordered on one side by the Suisun Marsh, a vital component of the San Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary. The property was purchased by the Solano Land Trust in 1988 with a grant from the California Coastal Conservancy.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
He will be honored in February at a chancellor's luncheon where he will receive a plaque and a cash award.
“Professor Thorp has had an outstanding professional career in the area of pollination ecology and systematics of honey and bumble bees,” said Lyn Lofland, president of the Executive Committee of the UC Davis Emeriti Association. “He has continued his professional contributions since he retired publishing both scientific papers and books. He has continued to teach and guide graduate students providing them with the benefit of his vast experience and knowledge. He also provides expert taxonomic services, identifying thousands of native bee specimens. He has coupled this effort with training numerous field assistants. Professor Thorp matched perfectly with the criteria established for the Distinguished Emeriti Award."
Thorp said it's a great honor to be named a distinguished emeritus. "It is an extra pleasure to be recognized for doing what I love and enjoy."
Thorp, who joined the UC Davis entomology faculty in 1964 and achieved emeritus status in 1994, is a state, national and global authority on pollination ecology, ecology and systematics of honey bees, bumble bees, vernal pool bees, conservation of bees, contribution of native bees to crop pollination, and bees of urban gardens and agricultural landscapes.
A fellow of the California Academy of Sciences since 1986 and a world authority on bumble bees and other native bees, Thorp keynoted the Smithsonian Institution's public symposium on “The Plight of the Bumble Bees” in June of 2009 in Washington D.C., delivering a presentation on “Western Bumble Bees in Peril.” He continues to monitor bumble bee populations in California and Oregon, including Franklin bumble bee (Bombus franklini), which he fears may be extinct. He has sounded the alarm on protecting bumble bees.
Thorp maintains his office and research headquarters in the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on the UC Davis campus. Among his latest publications: he co-authored two books published in 2014: Bumble Bees of North America: An Identification Guide (Princeton University Press) and California Bees and Blooms: A Guide for Gardeners and Naturalists (Heyday). Of the 20,000 bee species identified worldwide, some 4000 are found in the United States, and 1600 in California.
Thorp chaired the Jepson Prairie Advisory Committee at UC Davis from 1992-2011 (which includes seven years after his retirement). He is still active as a docent leading tours during the tour season. He is also involved in training new docents by providing information on the native bees that pollinate vernal pool flowers.
Thorp spends much of his time in the Bohart Museum of Entomology, which houses collections critical to his bee identification work. He identifies species and regularly volunteers at the open houses and other event.
Thorp is an integral part of The Bee Course, an annual 10-day workshop sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and held at the Southwestern Field Station near Portal, Ariz. He has taught there since 2002 (the instructors are all volunteers), and even though he is 81 years young, he plans to continue teaching there.
In an email conversation, colleague James Cane of the USDA-ARS Pollinating Insect Research Unit, Utah State University, Logan, said that “Dr. Robbin Thorp should be the first scientist to be cloned, so valuable and broadly integrated are his knowledge about bees and pollination. No one else I know has his combination of skills; normally several people would be needed. Thus, he is a taxonomist of several genera of bees, a competent pollination biologist studying both native bees and honey bees in both natural and agricultural realms (with research experience in several crops), and a conservation advocate for bees. Moreover, I have watched his considerable teaching skills while helping in The Bee Course over the years. There I also get to see what a model human being Robbin is: thoughtful, considerate, a great listener, playful, polite unpretentious, all traits that the students gravitate toward. I have looked to Robbin as a role model for over 30 years, listen carefully to what he has to say, and always look forward to being in his presence. UC Davis is very lucky indeed to have attracted and retained such a fabulous faculty member.”
Colleague Claire Kremen of UC Berkeley credits Thorp with not only identifying more than 100,000 bees for her research since his retirement in 1994, but helping her with research protocol and helping her graduate students identify bees. “Dr. Thorp has contributed in three main ways. First, he has provided expert input into the design of protocols for the research, including assays for pollinator effectiveness, developing citizen science methods, rearing experimental bumble bee colonies, monitoring bumble bee colony properties in the field, and developing pollinator survey methods. Second, he has provided expert taxonomic services, including personally identifying over 100,000 native bee specimens that we have collected during this work, and working with us to develop a bee traits database. Third, he has trained numerous field assistants and graduate students from my lab in different aspects of bee biology. He's spent long hours with many of my graduate students helping them learn to identify bees. He also helped us develop methods and information sheets for teaching field and lab teams to recognize key generic and family characters for identifying bees in the field and sorting them in the lab. He's advised many of my graduate students on different aspects of their work.”
Said Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and professor of entomology at UC Davis: “I have to say that Robbin has been phenomenal. He is more active in research and outreach every year. Regardless of what task is presented to him he is engaged and brings all his experience and knowledge to bear. I don't know many line faculty who are as active in their fields as Robbin is as a retiree. He is always available for museum events and loves to work with the public, particularly kids. I don't know of many pollination ecologists or bee systematists with his level of knowledge.”
Entomologist Katharina Ullmann, who received her doctorate in entomology in 2014 from UC Davis, says that Robbin Thorp is “one of the few people in North America who can identify bees down to the species level. As a result he's in high demand and has identified thousands of specimens for numerous lab groups since his retirement. However, he doesn't just identify the specimens. Instead, he's willing to patiently work through dichotomous keys with you so that you can learn those skills. His ongoing monitoring projects, work as an IUCN specialist, and recent books on bumble bee identification and guide to the bees of California show his commitment to the broader impacts of his research.”
Around the UC Davis campus, Thorp is known as a tireless advocate for pollinator education and outreach. He is often called upon by the Bohart Museum of Entomology and the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Garden (both part of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology), the UC Davis Arboretum and the California Center for Urban Horticulture to participate in their public outreach forums and events.
He spends countless hours connecting people of all ages to the world of insects, especially the pollinators like bumble bees. One of his research projects is monitoring the native bee activity in our department's bee garden, Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Garden, work that he has done since 2008. In addition, he frequently presents talks at UC Davis and afield, to diverse audiences including UC Master Gardeners, beekeeper groups, and schoolchildren.
Thorp, who calls Michigan his home state, received both his bachelor's degree and master's degree in zoology from the University of Michigan. He received his doctorate in entomology from UC Berkeley in 1964.
Previous recipients of the distinguished award:
2014: Tom Cahill, professor emeritus, physics
2013: Eldredge Moores, professor emeritus, geology
2012: Alex McCall, professor emeritus and former dean, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
2011: Charles Hess, professor emeritus and dean emeritus, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
2008: M. Wayne Thiebaud, emeritus professor, art
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Of the 20,000 bee species identified worldwide, some 4000 are found in the United States, and 1600 in California.
The book, the first of its kind, profiles some of the most common bee genera found in California gardens; their preferred plants, both native and non-native; and how to attract them.
In addition to the well-known honey bees and bumble bees, the authors spotlight such bees as mining, leafcutting, carpenter, sweat, digger, masked, longhorned, mason and polyester bees.
The honey bee, which provides pollination services valued at $217 billion globally and $20 million in the United States alone, is the most recognizable of the bees, but many are unaware of its non-native status. European colonists brought the honey bee to America in 1622.
California Bees and Bloom, published by the nonprofit Heyday Books in collaboration with the California Native Plant Society, is the work of urban entomologist Gordon Frankie. a professor and research entomologist at UC Berkeley; native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis; insect photographer and entomologist Rollin Coville, who holds a doctorate in entomology from UC Berkeley; and botanist/curator Barbara Ertter of UC Berkeley.
“This book is about urban California's bees: what they are, how and where they live, their relationships with ornamental flowers, and how to attract them to urban gardens,” they wrote. “It was written in the urgency of knowing that bees are critical to the health of our natural, ornamental and agricultural landscapes and that populations of some, perhaps many are in rapid decline.”
“While the book is specific to California, larger insights can be gathered about the role of native bees in developed landscapes (such as agriculture), and native bee conservation,” said Frankie, who researched bees in urban gardens in California for 13 years.
The book traces the first fossilized bee to Burma's Hukawng Valley, where it was lodged in amber approximately 100 million years ago.
The book destroys such myths as:
1. All bees make honey. Fact: Most native bees make no honey at all.
2. Bees die after they sting. Fact: Only the honey bees die; native solitary bees do not.
3. Male bees don't pollinator flowers. Fact: Male engage in pollination, but are not as efficient as most females.
4. Honey bees displace native bees on flowers. Fact: There is no evidence of that. In fact, “Recent research does indicate that interaction between honey bees and native bees results in an increase in the activity and efficiency of honey bees with regard to visiting (and pollinating) crops.”
California's bees differ in size, shape and color, as do the flowers they visit. “The tiniest bees are ant-sized; the largest rival small birds,” they wrote. “Some are iridescent green or blue, some are decked out with bright stripes, some are covered with fuzzy-looking hairs.”
Co-author Gordon Frankie's specialty is behavioral ecology of solitary bees in wildland, agricultural and urban environments of California and Costa Rica. He teaches conservation and environmental issues. He is involved in how people relate to bees and their plants and how to raise human awareness about bee-plant relationships.
Co-author Robbin Thorp, who retired in 1994 after 30 years of teaching, research and mentoring graduate students, continues to conduct research on pollination biology and ecology, systematics, biodiversity and conservation of bees, especially bumble bees. He is one of the instructors at the The Bee Course, affiliated with the American Museum of Natural History and held annually at the Southwestern Research Station, Portal, Ariz. The course is geared for conservation biologists, pollination ecologists and other biologists who seek greater knowledge of the systematics and biology of bees.
“The book is profusely illustrated with photos and drawings of bees and flowers, especially notable are the magnificent close up images of bees by co-author Rollin Coville,” Thorp said.
California Bees and Blooms lists 53 of urban California's best bee attractors identified through the Urban California Native Bee Survey. Among them: aster, bluebeard, catmint, California lilac or Ceanothus, cosmos, California sunflower, red buckwheat, California poppy, blanket flower, oregano, rosemary, lavender, gum plant, and salvia (sage). With each plant, they provide a description; origin and natural habitat, range and use in California; flowering season; resource for bees (such as pollen and nectar), most frequent bee visitors, bee ecology and behavior and gardening tips.
The book offers tips on how readers can “think like a bee.” It devotes one chapter to “Beyond Bee Gardening: Taking Action on Behalf of Native Bees.” In addition, the book provides quotes on bees and/or bee gardens from Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen (retired) of UC Davis: Ellen Zagory, horticulture director of the UC Davis Arboretum; and Kate Frey of Hopland, a designer of sustainable, insect-friendly gardens throughout California and in some parts of the world.
For more data on the book, the authors, and purchase information, access the publisher's website at https://heydaybooks.com/book/california-bees-and-blooms/
For ongoing research on California's bees and blooms, see the UC Berkeley website, www.helpabee.org.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
So begins the introductory chapter in the newly published book, Bumble Bees of North America: an Identification Guide (Princeton University Press, 2014).
Described as a comprehensive guide to North American bumble bees, it's the first publication of its kind in more than a century.
Co-author Robbin Thorp, a native pollinator specialist and emeritus professor of entomology at the University of California, Davis, says bumble bees have been around for more than 100 million years but their distribution and diversity are not well known. Bumble bees are just one of the some 20,000 species of bees that populate the world. Of that number, however, only about 250 species are bumble bees, and they all belong to the genus Bombus.
Some 46 different species of bumble bees reside in North America, north of Mexico, Thorp said.
In their book, lead author Paul Williams and co-authors Thorp, Leif Richardson and Sheila Colla provide detailed information about bumble bees and their history, plant favorites, distribution maps, up-to-date taxonomy, and extensive keys to identify the many color patterns of the species.
The book is drawing accolades. “A better team of scientists couldn't have written this amazing new book on bumble bees,” said Stephen Buchmann of the University of Arizona. “Readers will want to get out and find bumble bees, observe them, and learn what they can do to conserve them.”
Like many pollinators, bumble bees are in trouble as their habitat decreases and their health issues increase, Thorp said.
Wrote the co-authors: “Bumble bees have specific habitat requirements for nesting and overwintering, and a third aspect of habitat, forage, is even more important."
- farms and gardens with a diversity of flowering crops and herbs
- hay fields
- roadside ditches
- windbreaks with good abundance and diversity of “weedy” flowering plants, such as clovers and vetches
- wetlands and wet meadows
- hardwood forests
- mountain meadows, and
- urban parks and gardens
UC Davis campus and the surrounding Yolo County are not a real hot bed for bumble bee diversity,” Thorp said. “There are six species that have been recorded from the county, and one that's rarely seen.”
The primary species found in Yolo County are:
- Yellow-faced bumble bee, now known as the Vosnesensky bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii
- Yellow bumble bee, Bombus californicus, now known as Bombus fervidus
- Black-tailed bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus, formerly known as Bombus edwardsii. This is the first to fly in the winter and spring.
- Crotch bumble bee, Bombus crotchii, a short-tongued species
- Van Dyke bumble bee, Bombus vandykei, a medium long-tongued species
A bumble bee that Thorp has been trying to find for nine years is also included in the book: Franklin bumble bee, Bombus franklini. Its known distribution is a small geographic range in southern Oregon and northern California. The species declined sharply in 1999 and is feared extinct. Thorp last saw it in 2006.
Thorp, who joined the UC Davis faculty in 1964, retired in 1994 but continues to maintain his bee research, based at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road. His research involves the role of native bees in crop pollination, the role of urban gardens as bee habitat, and declines in native bumble bee populations. He is also heavily involved with the Jepson Prairie Reserve, researching the specialist bees in the vernal pool ecosystems.
Thorp and Coville, along with bumble bee enthusiast Gary Zamzow of Davis and UC Davis communication specialist Kathy Keatley Garvey, were among the more than 60 photographers providing photos for the book.
“Bumble bees are gentle and charming creatures,” said Zamzow, who photographs bumble bees on travels throughout the country. “They're fun to watch and photograph. The best way to find bumble bees is to look for flowering plants. When photographing bumble bees, try to photograph as many views of the bumble bee as possible—front and back.”
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
He is the co-author of Bumble Bees of California: An Identification Guide (2014, Princeton University Press) and California Bees and Blooms: A Guide for Gardeners and Naturalists (2014, Heyday Books).
Of the 20,000 bee species identified worldwide, some 4000 are found in the United States, and 1600 in California.
He continues to conduct research on bees because he enjoys it. He monitors the bee population at the half-acre bee friendly garden, Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven garden, located next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Facility on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis. He began collecting baseline data in the field before the garden was installed in the fall of 2009. To date, has collected more than 80 species of bees "and counting."
Robbin has long-term projects on the status of western bumble bees, on the diversity of bees on Santa Cruz Island, Calif., and on native pollen specialist bees in vernal pool ecosystems. He provides identification services for collaborators studying native bees as crop pollinators, habitat restoration for pollinators on farms, and urban gardens as bee habitat.
Brief Bio
Professor Thorp received his bachelor and master's degrees in zoology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and his doctorate degree in entomology from the University of California, Berkeley.
See more about Robbin Thorp (recipient of the distinguished emeritus award) on this web page
Information on native bees, vernal pools, bumble bees, and urban bee gardens:
Native bees are a rich natural resource in urban California gardens (California Agriculture)
Vernal pool flowers and their specialist bee pollinators (California Vernal Pools)
Bumble bees in decline (Xerces Society)
Bumble bees in Caifornia (UC Berkeley)
Urban bee gardens (UC Berkeley)
UC Davis Bee Team Wins Special Award
Robbin Thorp Research Wins Dickson Award
Robbin Thorp Part of Team Award, Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America
Robbin Thorp's Mission: Saving Franklin's Bumble Bee
Co-Author of Bumble Bees of North America
Robbin Thorp: Presentation on Buzzed for Bees
Robbin Thorp and Xerces Society: Saving a Bumble Bee
More (Watch his Webinar on bumble bees)
Contact:
Robbin Thorp
Professor emeritus, native pollinator specialist
Email: rwthorp@ucdavis.edu
Phone: (530) 752-0482