There are insect photographers and there are insect photographers. There are those who point and shoot, those who shoot and point, and those who see the world through a viewfinder. And then there's Illinois-based Alex Wild, who is in a class by himself.
You usually see them crawling around, but never about to fly. The Western spotted cucumber beetles (Diabrotica undecimpunctata) is one of California's most common insects. And though quite attractive in coloring, it's a major agricultural pest.
Things are buzzing over at the Robert Mondavi Wine and Food Science on the University of California, Davis campus. The RMI folks are gearing up for the big Honey! event, set for 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 21 in the UC Davis Conference Center.
Harvest is starting to pick up again, and the UC Rice Project is starting to harvest the statewide variety trials. The trials are conducted in collboration with the breeders at the Rice Experiment Station (RES).
If you've ever grown strawberries, you're probably familiar with what the lygus bug does. This major agricultural pest is one of the causes of those cat-faced strawberries you see in your garden or in the field. Cat-faced? Think misshapened, deformed or irregularly shaped berries.
When talking about chemical weed control, a lot of different terms are used to describe the chemicals and application techniques being used. Some are terms are pretty straight forward while others are a little more specific or specialized.
Honey in the morning Honey in the evening Honey at suppertime Be my little honey And love me all the time... So sang the McGuire Sisters in their 1958 hit tune, "Sugartime." And so will sing the Honeybee Trio of Vacaville at the Honey! event on Friday, Oct. 21 in the UC Davis Conference Center.
On October 12, the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its rice crop production estimate. California's estimate was adjusted down from the September estimate; from 8,400 lbs to 8,300 lbs/a.
It's good to see so many people looking for the critically imperiled Franklin's bumble bee, which the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may soon list as endangered and provide protective status.
It's a Good News Day. The Entomological Society of America (ESA) just announced that among the 2011 award recipients are two UC Davis faculty: Michael Parrella and Walter Leal.
