Rangelands

An Anise Swallowtail, Papilio zelicaon, settles on a red zinnia in a Vacaville pollinator garden and begins sipping the nectar. A honey bee buzzes by. Was she just passing through or did she want the same nectar? The bee brushes the butterfly's wings. Okay! I'm leaving! Score: Bee, 1; butterfly 0.

It's Labor Day but "The Girls" continue to work. "The Girls" are the honey bees, a great example of a matriarchal society.

The Invasive Pest Spotlight focuses on relevant or emerging invasive species in California. In this issue we are covering brooms, a group of invasive shrubs. Invasive Broom facts Brooms are upright shrubs in the legume family that typically produce small, yellow, pea-shaped flowers.

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.

The magic of a mural! It was quite a celebration during the unveiling of a UC Davis ceramic-mosaic mural, The Secret Life of Vineyards, took place at a Napa Valley organic vineyard.

Congratulations to community ecologist Louie Yang, a UC Davis professor in the Department of Entomology and Nematology and chair of the Entomology Graduate Program, He is one of 33 recipients of the 2023 UC Davis Graduate Program Advising and Mentoring Awards.

You've heard of hot dogs on a stick, s'mores on a stick, and maybe shrimp or lime pie on a stick, but have you ever heard of a Mantis on a Stick? "A praying mantis on a stick?" you ask.

With the unveiling of the UC Davis ceramic-mosaic mural, The Secret Life of Vineyards, life in a Napa Valley organic vineyard is no longer "a secret.

The crowd at the Bohart Museum of Entomology open house on "Praying Mantises" learned all about the predators, their biology, their behavior, and their prey. The open house, held from 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 27, drew guests of all ages.

Professor and community ecologist Louie Yang of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and chair of the Entomology Graduate Program, is one of 33 recipients of the 2023 UC Davis Graduate Program Advising and Mentoring Awards.