- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
And “millipede patrol.” And “powderpost beetle patrol.”
Kimsey, whose fly research on the island led to his nickname, “The Fly Man of Alcatraz,” will be leading 16 club members Saturday on an overnight insect/arthropod collecting tour, deploying insect light traps. They also will be surveying the rat population that threatens the bird sanctuaries on the island.
The project encompasses all of Saturday and part of Sunday. “Some in our group want to get back early so as not to miss the game,” said Kimsey, a faculty member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and the club’s advisor.
Kimsey knows that the Seattle team’s bird moniker is “Seahawks,” but he’s more interested in other birds--the birds in the island’s rookeries and the “The Bird Man of Alcatraz” (Robert Stroud)-- than in who’s throwing the pigskin.
“I’m not a football fan,” Kimsey acknowledged.
A UC Davis “rat patrol” in February of 2012 led to the discovery of a fluorescent millipede, a common arthropod but previously unknown to exist on the island. After National Park Service employees fed rats a bait laced with fluorescent, non-toxic dye, Kimsey and the club members began searching for fluorescent rat feces.
Had it consumed some of the rat bait? No. An experiment at the Bohart Museum of Entomology on the UC Davis campus showed that these millipedes (Xystocheir dissecta (Wood) glow under ultraviolet or black lights, just like scorpions.
Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and UC Davis professor of entomology, suspects that the millipedes on Alcatraz Island originated from soil transported over from the nearby Angel Island when “The Rock” was just that—rock with little or no soil.
The species is relatively abundant in the Bay Area. “This particular species of millipedes glowed all along, but nobody was paying any attention to it,” she said.
Nguyen is now doing research in the Bruce Hammock lab on the florescent millipedes. He wants to know what compound makes the millipede fluoresce under a UV light.
This will be Nguyen’s fourth overnight trip to The Rock. “I’m very excited to return,” he said.
The former maximum-security federal penitentiary once housed some of the country's most notorious inmates including not only “The Bird Man of Alcatraz” but Al “Scarface” Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, and Arthur “Doc” Barker.
Robert Kimsey does research on the nuisance flies that plague staff and tourists on Alcatraz. He became involved in the fly project in July 2007 when he received a call about the annoying flies from entomologist Bruce Badzik, integrated pest management coordinator with the National Park Service, Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Since then, they have worked on a number of projects involving UC Davis Entomology Club members.
So while the 49’ers and Seahawks collect first downs, touchdowns and field goals, entomologists Robert Kimsey and Bruce Badzik and the UC Davis students will be collecting millipedes, beetles and other arthropods.
And doing “rat patrol.”
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
He received the honor at the annual Excellence in Education Awards, sponsored by the Associated Students of UC Davis and coordinated by the Academic Affairs Commission.
“To prepare for this event, we ask students from each college to nominate teachers they feel are excellent,” said Rahul Sachdev, a commissioner with the Academic Affairs Commission. “After receiving hundreds of nominations from each college, we select three finalists from each college to interview. After interviewing those finalists, we then select an overall winner for each college. For the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, the overall winner was Dr. Kimsey.”
Kimsey received a plaque and a certificate signed by Desirae Costello, chair of the Academic Affairs Commission, and Dana Server, vice chair.
“From an early age, Professor Robert Kimsey was interested in the world of bugs and biology,” said Sachdev in presenting the award. “This early passion led Professor Kimsey to pursue a career in entomology. Currently, Professor Kimsey is not only a practicing entomologist but also a teacher. As a teacher, Professor Kimsey has taught numerous classes and has motivated and inspired a countless number of students.”
“A common sentiment expressed by those lucky enough to have taken Professor Kimsey was that Professor Kimsey goes above and beyond what is required of a teacher. For instance, Professor Kimsey frequently allows students to accompany him in the field where students are given the opportunity to apply the principles learned in class to a real-life situation.”
Sachdev also said that Kimsey “has not limited his role in the department of entomology to that of a teacher.” He serves as an advisor to graduate and undergraduate students and helps organize the department’s Picnic Day during the campuswide Picnic Day celebration.
“In turn, Dr. Kimsey’s contributions toward the department and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are significant to say the least,” Sachdev pointed out, adding that his “enthusiasm toward the subject matter, along with the dedication toward his students strengthens his reputation as an excellent professor.”
Said student Karina Snapp, following the awards presentation: "I would like to say that I am a rather shy student and did not see any of my professors outside of lecture until I met Dr. Kimsey. He is very welcoming and friendly. He really helped me come out of my shell and realize what I was capable of. He is exceptionally passionate about his field, and makes it easy and fun to learn from him. He will always be my favorite professor at UC Davis."
Student Andrew Magee offered: "Dr. Kimsey has been a source of inspiration and guidance for me since I began my undergraduate career. His command of his subject matter is impressive to the point that it's intimidating. He knows his stuff and he knows how to explain it. But more important than Dr. Kimsey's ability to teach science is that he knows how to teach people how to use scientific methods to produce knowledge. He teaches us that research is accessible, and for that lesson I will always be grateful. Dr. Kimsey is a professor who really cares for his students: I know I can rely on him for help, and for good, honest advice. I can't count the number of times he's offered to help students, anything from talking about assignments to helping them get research positions. He shaped my aspirations by opening my eyes to what he thought I was capable of, which is so much more than I thought of myself. My time at UC Davis would not have been the same, and would have been a much poorer experience, were it not for Professor Kimsey."
Kimsey, who received both his bachelor's degree and doctoral degree in entomology from UC Davis, coordinates and serves as the master advisor of the animal biology major at UC Davis, which includes some 400 students.
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.
Student Danielle Wishon, who works in his lab praised Kimsey as teaching with "contagious enthusiasm."
"I first met Bob five years ago when I joined the Entomology Club," Wishon said. "His enthusiasm for all biological disciplines and his personal interest in the success of all of his students made me quickly realize him to be an ideal mentor. During the time that I’ve been a part of his laboratory, I have gained lab and field training as well as have had the rare and special opportunity to gain hands on experience as a forensic entomologist, by accompanying him to multiple coroner’s office trips."
"Bob has used his connections with the National Park Service to help myself and a number of other students get field experience," Wishon said. "Most recently, several students from the Entomology Club were able to conduct a survey of the entirety of Alcatraz Island for beetle infestation and damage. This has already led to one student, now an alumnus, being qualified as a stored product pest consultant. An additional job on Alcatraz, a rat infestation survey, led to the discovery of fluorescing millipedes in a genus previously not known to fluoresce. The undergrad student that made the discovery is now conducting additional research and is looking to publish his work in the next year. I have personally been conducting research with Bob on the cormorant fly, a fly pest on Alcatraz, for the last couple of years."
Other student comments:
From Danielle George: “Professor Kimsey wasn't just my major adviser, he was a life mentor to me. Every time I would walk into his office with one question, I would find myself talking to him for an hour about anything. He was my professor and is now my friend.”
Mayllynne Lopez: “Dr. Kimsey is not only a brilliant professor, but an extraordinary advisor as well. He has given me advice that I will carry with me for the rest of my life.”
Edy Campos: “I would like to say that Professor Kimsey is one of the best professors I have had here on campus and I am happy that he received this award. I really believe that he takes a lot of time and effort to be a great professor which is shown through his great lectures. One thing that I believe that sets him apart from other professors is that although he is busy he makes time to get to know his students and that he really puts a lot of effort to try to help his students whether its with classes, finding a mentor or figuring out career paths when one seems to be lost at what to do. I am glad that I have had the chance to be in a lot of classes and work with him and get great advice that I will take with me even after I graduate.”
Hannah Greenspan: “Dr. Kimsey has been one of the most helpful professors I dealt with in my 4 years at UC Davis. I took animal biology classes with him and he is also my mentor for my senior practicum. It is always helpful and fun to go meet with him. I could not have been happier with Dr. Kimsey during my time at Davis. I agree that he is an outstanding educator!”
Other winners of the 2013 Excellence in Education awards:
College of Engineering: Sean Davis
College of Biological Science: Lauren Liets
College of Letters and Science, Division of Math and Physical Sci: Eli Goldwyn
College of Letters and Science, Division of Social Sciences: Cara Chiaraluce
College of Letters and Science, Division of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies: Martin Weis
Educator of the year: Sean Davis
Related Links:
Fly Man of Alcatraz
April 26, 2011 See more photos
He's not there to tour the “The Rock” or contemplate the lives of the notorious criminals once housed in the former federal penitentiary--inmates like Al “Scarface” Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, Robert “The Birdman of Alcatraz” Stroud or Arthur “Doc” Barker.
He's there to do research on the nuisance flies that plaque staff and tourists.
Meet Robert Kimsey, “The Fly Man of Alcatraz,” a name given him by a former guard at the penitentiary during the 2007 Alcatraz Reunion..
The professor-researcher has traveled to the island about 50 times since July 2007. When he stays overnight, he sleeps in the same cell once occupied by “The Birdman of Alcatraz”-- Cell 42 in D block.
Cell 42, basically an all-steel box with steel bars on the windows, offers a dazzling view of San Francisco.
“One day when I was working on research until 4:30 a.m., I laid down in the cell, extremely tired,” Kimsey said. “I looked through the steel bars and saw the lights of San Francisco. I thought about how I'd feel if I had to spend a large chunk of my life in this cell. I'd certainly be very angry with myself.”
Kimsey became involved in the fly project in July 2007 when he received a call about the annoying flies from entomologist Bruce Badzik, integrated pest management coordinator with the National Park Service, Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
Complaints rose to a feverish pitch in late August, September and October. The flies seemed to land on people as if they were rotten meat. Kimsey witnessed the incessant “shoo-fly” behavior on the docks and encountered it on a personal basis.
Kimsey identified the troubling fly as a “kelp fly” (Fucillia thinobia) or “cormorant fly” in the family Anthomyiidae. “But it's not a kelp fly as such,” said Kimsey, who plans to publish his research in an entomological journal. “It has nothing to do with kelp. It lives in purge-soaked soil under dead cormorants found in rookeries all around the island. It does not exist in any other place.”
Since federal law prohibits people from entering the rookeries--inhabited by cormorants, gulls, night herons, egrets and pigeon guillemots--Kimsey could not examine the rookeries until the nesting birds vacated the area.
Fucillia thinobia creates problems for four to six weeks as the cormorants start to leave the island, the entomologists said. In the late summer or early fall, usually in September and October, the flies vacate the rookeries on the west side of the island, and move to various parts, including the dock on the east side.
“With Bob's dedication and professionalism, he has been able to create this enthusiastic desire by island staff to know more about the biology of this fly,” Badzik said. “This is an impressive thing to do on an island with a rich cultural history.”
“This fly has no public health significance,” Kimsey said. “They rest on human beings as they rest on any other surface—on the ground, buildings and on humans. Like flying insects found on islands, they remain near the ground and tend to flit from place to place rather than fly high in an air column.
His research involved quizzing park rangers, former prisoners and guards at the 2007 Alcatraz Reunion, held Aug. 12. “Do you recall flies ever being a problem on Alcatraz during your association with the island?” he asked.
“Of 15 persons interviewed, all but one stated that they had no recollection of flies ever having been a problem anywhere on the island in the period prior to 1963,” he said. (The island was a federal penitentiary from 1934 to 1963). The sole person describing any kind of a fly as a problem recalled small non-metallic, gray-colored flies in the kitchen.
Back then the island had no extensive rookeries as it has today, Kimsey said.
Kimsey and Badzik, partners in the fly problem, know The Rock well. They have scrutinized every building, the entire shoreline, the cliffs and tunnels, the rookeries, trash cans, public restrooms, sewage facilities and “certainly every potential source of flies commonly associated with humans.”
The entomologists survey places off limits to the public, such as the Citadel, “part of the old Civil War fort beneath the main cell block where they used to put prisoners.”
The result: none of the sites contributes to the production of flies except the rookeries.
“We discovered that the shoreline of Alcatraz offers no habitat for the genus Fucillia,” Kimsey said. “F. thinobia does not breed in the piles of decomposing kelp and other flotsam, commonly known as beach wrack.”
So far, Kimsey and Badzik have identified 17 species of flies on the island. Before their research, no one knew how many or what species of flies existed on Alcatraz. However, only one—the cormorant fly—bothers staff and visitors.
Kimsey continues to place baited fly traps on the island and checks them repeatedly. He reared a colony of kelp flies in his UC Davis lab until a fungus killed them.
The UC Davis students also receive lessons on the history of the island from Bruce Badzik. For example, Alcatraz was the site of the first lighthouse and first U.S. built fort on the West Coast before it became a federal prison. Today the National Park Service offers year-around tours, except on major holidays.
“Alcatraz is truly a wonderful place to go,” Kimsey said. “It combines history with living history. The 1920s, 30s and 40s--and the criminals and gangsters of that era—those were interesting times in American history. There was this idea in the criminal justice system that one can correct criminal behavior by isolating them from other people--forcing them to be introspective by sitting in their cell and thinking about the wrongs they committed. The name, penitentiary, has its origins with Puritans or Quakers. They felt that when you commit a wrong and do penance, you can be reformed.”
Kimsey, who has attended several Alcatraz Reunions, reuniting former inmates, guards and others who lived on the island when it was a federal penitentiary, is now friends with many of them. Of the former inmates he's met: “To a person, each one had no desire to be involved in recidivism after staying on the island.”
For some, it involved a revelation. “They ‘saw the light' as they sat on the island contemplating the errors of their ways,” Kimsey said. “They fell back into the religion that they had embraced as a child. For others, it was an epiphany—a sudden realization--of why they should be good and the consequences of being bad. They didn't want to be bad any more.”
Meanwhile, the flies aren't the problem they were in 2007, 2008 and 2009 (the year Kimsey was awarded a National Park Service grant).
“In 2010, the cormorants didn't come back and neither did the flies,” Kimsey said. “Gulls came back but not flies. It doesn't appear they will be a major problem in 2011.”
It could be because of the reduced food supply for the cormorants, the forensic entomologist said. “The sardines and herring off shore may have diminished, perhaps because of a shift in currents.”
<“This has been one of the most interesting entomological projects that I have worked on in my career,” Badzik said. “Through our research, we are discovering an enormous amount of information on this fly and how it is influenced by the cormorants on the island. None of the other dozen or more species of birds on the island have any relationship—at least as we know right now—to this fly.”
(Editor's Note: Forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey will speak on “The Flies of Alcatraz” at a meeting of the Northern California Entomology Society on Thursday, May 5 in the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis. His talk begins at 1: 15 p.m.)
Links:
Reservations to tour the island
About Alcatraz, part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area
The Penitentiary
--Kathy Keatley Garvey
Communications specialist
UC Davis Department of Entomology
(530) 754-6894
April 19, 2011 See news story on Robert Kimsey
UC Davis forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey, known as "The Fly Man of Alcatraz" for his work researching flies on the San Francisco Bay island that once housed some of the nation's most notorious criminals, will discuss his current research at the next meeting of the Northern California Entomology Society.
The meeting takes place from 9:15 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday, May 5 in the conference room of the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road, University of California, Davis.
Registration for club members and guests begins at 9:15 a.m. Membership is open to all interested persons.
Kimsey, an adjunct professor of entomology at UC Davis, works with the National Parks Service on research projects. He will speak on "The Flies of Alcatraz."
He is one of five speakers who will address the group from 9:45 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The agenda:
9:15 a.m.: Registration and coffee for club members and guests
9:45 a.m.: “Non-target Effects of Mosquito Control,” aquatic entomologist-community ecologist Sharon Lawler, professor UC Davis Department of Entomology
10:30 a.m. “Trichogramma (Stingless Wasps) for Control of the Light Brown Apple Moth,” entomologist William Roltsch, senior environmental research scientist, Biocontrol Program, California Department of Food and Agriculture, Sacramento
11:15 a.m.: “Pakistani Asian Citrus Psyllid Parasitoids,” entomologist Mark Hoddle, Extension specialist in biological control, and director for the Center for Invasive Species Research, UC Riverside Department of Entomology
Noon: (Lunch menu below)
1:15 p.m.: “Flies of Alcatraz,” forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey, adjunct professor, UC Davis Department of entomology
2 p.m.:“Ecosystems of Hedgerows: Pollination and Pest Control, UC Farm Advisor Rachael Long, pest management specialist, Yolo and Solano counties.
The Northern California Entomology Society is comprised of university faculty, researchers, pest abatement professionals, students and other interested persons. Newly elected president of the society is Leann Horning, an ag technician with the CDFA Biocontrol Program since 1990.
The society meets three times a year: the first Thursday in February, usually in Sacramento; the first Thursday in May, at UC Davis; and the first Thursday in November in the Contra Costa Mosquito and Vector Control District conference room, Concord. Membership dues are $10 year.
Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology faculty serves as the secretary-treasurer.
For further information, contact Mussen at ecmussen@ucdavis.edu or call (530) 752-0472
Directions to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility:
From the east: Take Interstate 80 to Highway 113 north, the Woodland exit. Go over the freeway overpass and then take the immediate next exit, Hutchison, on your right. On Hutchison, turn left (or west, toward the airport) and continue for about 1.3 miles. Turn left onto Hopkins Road and then take an immediate left onto Bee Biology Road. The first building on the right is Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility. Parking is free in front of the building or between the olive trees on both sides of the road.
From the west: Take I-80 through Dixon to Pedrick Road. Exit onto Pedrick and turn left at the stop sign, and proceed over the I-80 overpass. Proceed north on Pedrick a few miles. Turn right on Hutchinson and then right on Hopkins Road and left on Bee Biology Road. The first building on the right is Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility. Parking is free in front of the building or between the olive trees on both sides of the road.
Lunch menu Eric Mussen, secretary-treasurer of the Northern California Entomology Society, is taking lunch choice reservations. You may order a sandwich below ($15) by May 1 or bring your own. Contact him at ecmussen@ucdavis.edu; phone (530) 752-0472; or fax, (530) 752-1537. He will place the orders, which will be payable to him at the meeting. Safeway Select Favorite Sandwiches Great Western – Smoked turkey, pepper jack and chipotle dressing on artisan split crust bread. California Dreamin' – Pan-roasted turkey breast, avocado, ranch spread, bacon, green leaf lettuce and tomato on rustic Italian bread. Smoke Stack – Smoked turkey breast, black forest ham, smoked fontina, tomato, green leaf lettuce and spicy mustard on artisan split crust bread. Primo Italiano – Black forest ham, Genoa salami, provolone, pepperoncini, mayonnaise, lettuce and tomato on artisan split crust bread. Chicago South Sider – Roast beef, horseradish cheddar cheese, horseradish sauce, lettuce and tomato on rustic Italian bread. Classic – Choice of Primo Taglio brand meats (grilled chicken, smoked turkey, pan roasted turkey, ham, roast beef, salami, chicken salad or tuna salad), primo Taglio brand cheeses (American, cheddar, Swiss, havarti, provolone), and condiments (lettuce, tomato, red onion, caramelized onion, green bell pepper, pepperoncini, dill pickle, bacon, and avocado) on your choice of bread: artisan split crust (original, cheddar, pesto), rustic Italian, country white or wheat, ciabatta, or focaccia (square, crusted roll). Caesar Salad – Romaine lettuce, creamy Caesar dressing, baked bagel croutons, specialty bread and cookie. City Salad – Spring mix, sweet roasted walnuts, gorgonzola cheese, raspberry vinaigrette, baked bagel croutons, specialty bread and cookie. |
--Kathy Keatley Garvey
Communications specialist
UC Davis Department of Entomology
(530) 754-6894
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
But the 15 University of California, Davis, students weren't skipping class.
They were taking it.
Slipping off their backpacks, they trekked down to the sluggish Putah Creek west of campus to try their luck catching sunfish, bass and other fish. They stood on the sun-dappled banks and cast their lines in the water as life itself floated by. A tadpole surfaced and darted back to the muddy bottom; a crawfish poked through the thick algae looking for prey; and dragonflies and butterflies lurked and glided across the creek.
An errant soccer ball, now a creek trophy, bobbed like a gigantic cork. Off in the distance, a boastful rooster served as the morning D.J.
It was the second week of classroom instruction on the UC Davis campus. But this classroom has no walls, no roof, no desks and no chairs.
For reels.
It's an annual animal biology class taught by forensic entomologist Robert Kimsey, an adjunct professor in the UC Davis Department of Entomology who is known for his excellence in teaching and commitment to students. For one day of the quarter, he takes his students, in groups of 15 and teams of two, fishing.
But it's much more than that.
His unique teaching approach starts with a “fish sampling field trip” that exposes his students to “the methods and practice of sampling fishes using common techniques from fisheries biology,” Kimsey said. It's one part of the scientific method: an hypothesis, experiments to test that hypothesis, analysis of the data, conclusions, and communication of the results.
“ABI50A is a two-unit animal biology laboratory course that introduces students to the scientific method as a continuous process,” said Kimsey, the recipient of several teaching awards, including the 2006 Outstanding Educator in the College of Biological Sciences, presented by the Associated Students of UC Davis.
“Bob is one of our most outstanding instructors in the Department of Entomology,” said Michael Parrella, professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. “He is truly dedicated to the students and strives to get them to ‘think' in this and other outdoor classrooms rather than simply memorize and regurgitate facts.”
Some students had never fished before. No problem. Kimsey and his teaching assistant, Amy Morice, an entomology graduate student, showed them how, along with student and veteran angler Sarah Pereverzieu, who for the last three summers has worked as a nature guide at the Alisal Guest Ranch, Solvang, “One of my duties was to teach guests how to fish,” she said.
Expressly for the field trip, Kimsey obtained the proper permits from the California Department of Fish and Game that allowed him to use seines, wire fish traps or cages, and rods and reels. The day before the class, he paddled out in his canoe to set the fish cages. The next morning, at the edge of the creek, he discussed the history of fishing and demonstrated how to catch them. Students took turns paddling with him to check the fish traps.
All total, the 15 students caught two fish, several crawfish, a tadpole, algae, a tree branch, tree leaves and a rash. Stacy Williams of Orange, Calif., hooked a small sunfish while Shannon Kaefer of Salinas, reeled in a small largemouth bass. The seines, weighted nets that float along the top of the surface, snared the lone tadpole, while the fishing traps yielded the crawfish.
“Some inquires are deceptively simple,” he said. “For example, it may be that the literature indicates that a particular species of sunfish prefers to reside in submerged aquatic vegetation. One might predict that their prey does as well. A curious student can test this idea by comparing stomach contents of this species with samples of insect prey sampled from aquatic plants in the Delta.”
“Simple as this project may appear to be,” he said, “teams of students go through the entire process of gathering preliminary information, agreeing on a pair of mutually exclusive hypotheses that predict observations they can make from fish dissections, writing a grant proposal, gathering the data from dissections in the laboratory, data analysis, drawing conclusions, writing a paper and giving a PowerPoint presentation talk to the rest of the class on their results.”
The work is done in teams, but each student writes his or her own version of the paper and gives a portion of the PowerPoint presentation.
“The hidden agendas of this course,” he said, “include promoting writing and public speaking skills and learning to work in teams, three essential social skills of any good scientist.”
Kimsey said new questions arise in any scientific inquiry, “not only from the results of a well thought-out test of an idea, but from the process of inquiry itself. Thus the scientific method perpetually exposes our ignorance of the world around us stimulating new ideas and questions to be explored.”
And how to catch fish on a sun-dappled morning along Putah Creek while their peers are sitting in lecture halls.