Ongoing research

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This photo of a black soldier fly, by Jena Johnson, is "Mr. October" in the ESA calendar. (Photo by Jena Johnson, used with permission)

A Buggy New Year!

January 1, 2015
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's a buggy new year! One of the fascinating things about beginning the new year is the Entomological Society of America's "World of Insects" calendar. Amazing images of insects (and one spider!) jump out at you.
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Monarchs roosting on the leaves of a Eucalyptus tree. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Dead Leaves Hanging from a Tree? No, Monarchs

December 30, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
At first glance, they looked like dead leaves hanging on an Eucalyptus tree in the Natural Bridges State Park, Santa Cruz. From 75 to 80 feet below, they bore no resemblance to monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus), the most familiar butterfly in all of North America.
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An almond tree at the Benicia State Recreation Area was blooming on Christmas Day. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Almonds Are Blooming! The Almonds Are Blooming!

December 29, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
The almonds are blooming! The almonds are blooming! Well, at least one almond tree in the Benicia State Recreation Area is blooming. On a drive to Benicia on Christmas Day, we spotted several blooms on an almond tree.
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A cabbage white butterfly on catmint in Vacaville, Solano County. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Beer for a Butterfly

December 26, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
DAVIS--A beer for a butterfly. If you collect the first live cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae) of 2015 in Yolo, Sacramento or Solano counties and have it verified as the winner, you'll get a pitcher of beer or its equivalent.
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Golden bee (Cordovan) nectaring on lavender. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Revisiting 'The 13 Bugs of Christmas'

December 24, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's time to revisit "The 13 Bugs of Christmas." You've heard "The 12 Days of Christmas," beginning with a single "partridge in a pear tree" and ending with "12 drummers drumming.
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Inside the hive. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Night Before Christmas...in a Bee Colony

December 24, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Professor Clement Clarke Moore (July 15, 1779 July 10, 1863) wrote "A Visit from St. Nicholas" for his family in 1822. It later became known as "The Night Before Christmas." Fast forward, 92 years later.
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This photo by Professor Jay Rosenheim of UC Davis shows sexual cannibalism. The female (larger one) has just chomped off the head of the male, during sexual reproduction.

Making a Meal Out of a Male: Prayers Answered!

December 23, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Male praying mantids looking for "a little love" don't always fare well. Sometimes they lose their head. Female mantids can--and do--cannibalize them before, during or after copulation.
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UC Weed Science (weed control, management, ecology, and minutia): Article

New Publication: Principles of Weed Control, 4th Edition

December 23, 2014
By Brad Hanson
The California Weed Science Society recently published the 4th edition of the Principles of Weed Control as an e-book. This textbook/handbook that has been a valuable resource for many years and I'm excited that it has been updated.
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