Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources
Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources
Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources
University of California
Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources

Posts Tagged: Melissodes agilis

Let's Roll!

Let's roll! During the golden hour, right before sunset, have you ever watched a male longhorned bee roll full-barrel over a flower at Top Gun speed? During the day, the male longhorned target assorted insects foraging on "their" patch of flowers....

A male Melissodes agilis barreling over a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male Melissodes agilis barreling over a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male Melissodes agilis barreling over a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Friday, September 1, 2023 at 8:42 AM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

Defensive Measures: Leave Me Alone!

Have you ever seen the defensive antics of a female longhorned bee, sometimes called a sunflower bee, as she's trying to forage on flowers while a suitor is trying to get her attention? (To mate with her) Such is the case in our family's pollinator...

A male Melissodes agilis dives toward the female of his species, but she's not interested. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male Melissodes agilis dives toward the female of his species, but she's not interested. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male Melissodes agilis dives toward the female of his species, but she's not interested. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

In a defensive, leave-me-alone measure, the female Melissodes agilis kicks at the male. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
In a defensive, leave-me-alone measure, the female Melissodes agilis kicks at the male. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

In a defensive, leave-me-alone measure, the female Melissodes agilis kicks at the male. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male Melissodes agilis flies off, leaving the female alone, but not for long. He'll be back. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The male Melissodes agilis flies off, leaving the female alone, but not for long. He'll be back. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male Melissodes agilis flies off, leaving the female alone, but not for long. He'll be back. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 10:01 AM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

Get Off My Turf!

Get off my turf! The native bees known as Melissodes, the longhorned bees, start stirring in the early morning. First, they settle on a leaf or flower to warm up their flight muscles. Once ready to fly, they don't let up until late...

A male Melissodes agilis pauses to sip nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male Melissodes agilis pauses to sip nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male Melissodes agilis pauses to sip nectar from a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Get off my turf! A male Melissodes agilis bops another male of the species. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Get off my turf! A male Melissodes agilis bops another male of the species. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Get off my turf! A male Melissodes agilis bops another male of the species. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)


"I said get off my turf." The male Melissodes agilis trying to claim territorial rights.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"I said get off my turf." The male Melissodes agilis trying to claim territorial rights.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Wednesday, August 2, 2023 at 10:06 AM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Innovation, Natural Resources, Yard & Garden

Decisions, Decisions! The Katydid or the Bee?

So here's this crab spider stalking a katydid nymph foraging on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. Dinner awaits! Suddenly a native bee, Melissodes agilis, lands next to the katydid and begins to sip some nectar. Decisions, decisions! Do...

A crab spider is about to nail a katydid nymph when a longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, appears on the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A crab spider is about to nail a katydid nymph when a longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, appears on the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A crab spider is about to nail a katydid nymph when a longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, appears on the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, continues to forage under the watchful eye of the crab spider. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, continues to forage under the watchful eye of the crab spider. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The longhorned bee, Melissodes agilis, continues to forage under the watchful eye of the crab spider. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The longhorned bee turns aways from the crab spider, still unaware of the danger. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The longhorned bee turns aways from the crab spider, still unaware of the danger. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The longhorned bee turns aways from the crab spider, still unaware of the danger. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The crab spider hauls the struggling katydid nymph over the side of the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The crab spider hauls the struggling katydid nymph over the side of the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The crab spider hauls the struggling katydid nymph over the side of the Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Friday, May 12, 2023 at 9:04 AM
Focus Area Tags: Environment, Yard & Garden

Climate-Change Resources

University of California UC ANR Green Blog (Climate Change and Other Topics) https://ucanr.edu/blogs/Green/index.cfm?tagname=climate%20change (full index)

Examples:

     -  Save Trees First: Tips to Keep Them Alive Under Drought https://ucanr.edu/b/~CdD 

     - Landscaping with Fire Exposure in Mind: https://ucanr.edu/b/~G4D

     - Cities in California Inland Areas Must Make Street Tree Changes to adapt to Future Climate  https://ucanr.edu/b/~oF7

 
 

Drought, Climate Change and California Water Management Ted Grantham, UC Cooperative Extension specialist (23 minutes) https://youtu.be/dlimj75Wn9Q

Climate Variability and Change: Trends and Impacts on CA Agriculture Tapan Pathak, UC Cooperative Extension specialist (24 minutes) https://youtu.be/bIHI0yqqQJc

California Institute for Water Resources (links to blogs, talks, podcasts, water experts, etc.) https://ciwr.ucanr.edu/California_Drought_Expertise/

UC ANR Wildfire Resources (publications, videos, etc.) https://ucanr.edu/News/For_the_media/Press_kits/Wildfire/ (main website)

      -UC ANR Fire Resources and Information https://ucanr.edu/sites/fire/ (main website)

            -Preparing Home Landscaping https://ucanr.edu/sites/fire/Prepare/Landscaping/

UC ANR Free Publications https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/ (main website)

- Benefits of Plants to Humans and Urban Ecosystems: https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8726.pdf

 -Keeping Plants Alive Under Drought and Water Restrictions (English version) https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8553.pdf

  (Spanish version) https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8628.pdf

-  Use of Graywater in Urban Landscapes https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8536.pdf

-  Sustainable Landscaping in California https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8504.pdf

 

Other (Non-UC) Climate Change Resources

Urban Forests and Climate Change. Urban forests play an important role in climate change mitigation and adaptation. Active stewardship of a community's forestry assets can strengthen local resilience to climate change while creating more sustainable and desirable places to live. https://www.fs.usda.gov/ccrc/topics/urban-forests

Examining the Viability of Planting Trees to Mitigate Climate Change (plausible at the forest level) https://climate.nasa.gov/news/2927/examining-the-viability-of-planting-trees-to-help-mitigate-climate-change/

Reports and other information resources coordinated under the auspices of the United Nations and produced through the collaboration of thousands of international scientists to provide a clear and up to date view of the current state of scientific knowledge relevant to climate change. United Nations Climate Action

Scientific reports, programs, action movements and events related to climate change. National Center for Atmospheric Research (National Science Foundation)

Find useful reports, program information and other documents resulting from federally funded research and development into the behavior of the atmosphere and related physical, biological and social systems. Search and find climate data from prehistory through to an hour ago in the world's largest climate data archive. (Formerly the "Climatic Data Center") National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA)

Think tank providing information, analysis, policy and solution development for addressing climate change and energy issues (formerly known as the: "Pew Center on Global Climate Change"). Center for Climate & Energy Solutions (C2ES)

Mapping Resilience: A Blueprint for Thriving in the Face of Climate Disaster. The Climate Adaptation Knowledge Exchange (CAKE) was launched in July 2010 and is managed by EcoAdapt, a non-profit with a singular mission: to create a robust future in the face of climate change by bringing together diverse players to reshape planning and management in response to rapid climate change. https://www.cakex.org/documents/mapping-resilience-blueprint-thriving-face-climate-disaster

Cal-Adapt provides a way to explore peer-reviewed data that portrays how climate change might affect California at the state and local level. We make this data available through downloads, visualizations, and the Cal-Adapt API for your research, outreach, and adaptation planning needs. Cal-Adapt is a collaboration between state agency funding programs, university and private sector researchers https://cal-adapt.org/

Find reports, maps, data and other resources produced through a confederation of the research arms of 13 Federal departments and agencies that carry out research and develop and maintain capabilities that support the Nation's response to global change. Global Change (U.S. Global Change Research Program)

The Pacific Institute is a global water think tank that combines science-based thought leadership with active outreach to influence local, national, and international efforts to develop sustainable water policies. https://pacinst.org/our-approach/

Making equity real in climate adaptation and community resilience policies and programs: a guidebook. https://greenlining.org/publications/2019/making-equity-real-in-climate-adaption-and-community-resilience-policies-and-programs-a-guidebook/ 

Quarterly CA Climate Updates and CA Drought Monitor Maps (updated each Thursday) https://www.drought.gov/documents/quarterly-climate-impacts-and-outlook-western-region-june-2022

 

 

 

 

Posted on Wednesday, May 10, 2023 at 1:21 PM
Focus Area Tags: Environment

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