Integrated Pest Management in Southern California

Chemical ecologist Jeffrey Aldrich working in Japan in the lab of Walter Leal. (Photo by Walter Leal)

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The Incredible Life of Chemical Ecologist Jeffrey Richard Aldrich

August 6, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Tributes are pouring in for renowned chemical ecologist Jeffrey Richard Aldrich (1949-2025), a longtime researcher at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, USDA Agricultural Research Service, who retired in 2011 and then worked with UC Davis researchers for a decade.Aldrich was considered…

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Western yellowjacket in Marin County. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Beware of Yellowjacket Nests

August 5, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Beware of yellowjacket nests in our state parks--and elsewhere, as well!Self-described "Wasp Woman" UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emerita Lynn Kimsey who directed the Bohart Museum of Entomology for 34 years until her retirement last year, continues to field many a question about insects, including…

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Spotted wing drosophila on raspberry. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Joanna Chiu, Scientist Extraordinaire

August 4, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

"From the first minute I joined her lab, I noticed how she always provides a healthy environment to foster the discussion of scientific ideas, respecting and valuing everyone’s point of view. I was amazed to see that this does not stop with her lab, but it extends far beyond. Joanna has devoted her…

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Jeff Smith spreading wings of a moth. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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How Tiny Is This Moth?

August 1, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

What a tiny moth!Jeff Smith, volunteer curator of the Lepidoptera collection at the Bohart Museum of Entomology at the University of California, Davis, for three decades, has just spread the wings of a micro-moth with a wingspan (both wings open) measured at about 1 centimeter.And it is not only tiny,…

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A longhorned bee on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Rise Early to Greet a Male Longhorned Bee

July 29, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

How can you capture a close-up image of a male longhorned bee, such as Melissodes agilis or Svastra obliqua expurgata?Before the sun rises, slip out into the patch of flowers where you've seen them before. They will be sleeping or slighty stirring. (The females return to their nests at night,…

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Monarch butterfly fluttering by a garden owl. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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What a Hoot!

July 29, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Several years ago, a friend gifted us with some garden art, an owl. Its head does not rotate. Its wings do not move. It does not scare away birds or squirrels. It does not scare away butterflies, either.Last week a monarch fluttered in our pollinator garden and quickly spotted a milkweed…

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Insect Pavilion at California State Fair. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Getting Acquainted with Insects at the California State Fair

July 29, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

UC Davis alumnus and "entomology ambassaor"Jakob Lopez, who receivewd his bachelor's degree in animal biology in June, drew the rapt attention of fairgoers at the California State Fair's Insect Pavilion, sponsored by the State Fair, California Department of Agriculture, and the Bohart…

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Western tiger swallowtail, Papilio rutulus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

Hold That Tiger!

July 28, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Hold that tiger!When a Western tiger swallowtail, Papilio rutulus, glides into your yard, it's the next best thing to a monarch. This one took a liking to the Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, guareded by male long-horned bees. Very territorial.UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emeritus Art…

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Female monarch on narrow-leafed milkweed in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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First Monarch of 2025

July 25, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Strike up the band!We greeted the first monarch of the year in our Vacaville pollinator garden today. The female arrived at 12: 45 p. m. and laid eggs on five milkweed plants. She sipped a little nectar. A male Gulf Fritillary chased her, a spider eyed her, lady beetles ignored her, and the cat that…

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Muralist Joi McNeil in front of her large-scale mural in Vacaville.

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Newly Created Vacaville Mural Includes State Insect, State Flower

July 24, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Joi McNeil's newly created large-scale mural in historic downtown Vacaville is drawing widespread raves--and deservedly so!It not only celebrates the Pony Express Days of 1860-61 and the region's historically renowned fruit orchards, but it showcases the state flower, the California golden poppy; the…

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A drone and a worker bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey

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A Great Day for Vacaville Kids to Learn About Bees

July 23, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

"Special treats" involving honey bees await those attending the Vacaville Museum Guild's annual Children's Party, set for 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Museum courtyard, 213 Buck Ave., Vacaville.The event, for Vacaville children ages 3 to 9, offers a wide variety of activities, including games, arts and…

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Cabbage white butterfly, Pieris rapae, in flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

My Cat Ate My Butterfly

July 22, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The problem with being a “Little Game Hunter” is that there are other “Little Game Hunters” lurking around you.Take today. Please. During my “Bug Break” this afternoon, I stepped into our pollinator garden intending to capture a few images of butterflies in flight with my trusty Nikon and zoom…

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Article

Pipe Cleaner Caterpillars

July 21, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

"Fuzzy Wuzzy" was not a bear. "Fuzzy Wuzzy" was--and is--a pink pipe cleaner caterpillar. And sometimes it comes in yellow, green, orange, blue, white or red.Pipe cleaners are used to clean smoking pipes, ridding them of residue and moisture. But as chenille stems, they find themselves in a wide…

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Mint moth (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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How Moths Differ from Butterflies

July 18, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

How do moths differ from butterflies?Scientists at the Bohart Museum of Entomology at UC Davis answered questions and displayed both moths and butterflies at their recent Moth Night, in observation of National Moth Week, July 19-27. Bohart associates Jeff Smith, curator of the Lepidoptera collection…

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A crowd begins to gather around the blacklighting demonstration. (Photo by Kristy Vasquez)

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How Many Species of Moths at Bohart Museum's Moth Night?

July 17, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Curious minds want to know.How many species of moths did scientists detect in the blacklighting demonstration at the Bohart Museum of Entomology's annual Moth Night, held Saturday, July 12?"We caught a total of 11 moths at the light sheet--five species in five different families," said Bohart Museum…

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Members of the National Academy of Sciences penned a letter to Congress about the proposed budget cuts. UC Davis Distinguished Professor Walter Leal created a video showcasing the letter.

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Raising the Alarm About Science Budget Cuts

July 16, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Breaking News: More than 1,218 members of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), including 61 Nobel laureates and 46 recipients of the National Medal of Science, this week signed a letter urging Congress to reject the FY26 science budget cuts that threaten U.S. leadership in science, health, and…

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Tobacco hornworm gently placed in a hand. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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My Turn to Hold the Hornworm

July 15, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

"My turn to hold the hornworm!"Youth and adults alike clamored to hold the tobacco hornworms at the Bohart Museum of Entomology's Moth Night.While attendees held the hornworms, other hornworms munched on a tomato plant. A display sign about Metamorphosis in the Garden read:"Tobacco hornworms …

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Gulf Fritillary spreading its wings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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The 'Passion Butterfly'

July 14, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

That "passion butterfly," the Gulf Fritillary...Ever watched a Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae, touch down on its host plant, the passionflower vine, Passiflora? Ever seen two Gulf Frits sipping nectar from a single passionflower blossom? We remember what UC Davis Distinguished Professor…

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White Witch at the Bohart Museum of Entomology

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The Witch Is In: At the Bohart Museum's Moth Night

July 11, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

It's not Halloween yet, but you'll see a "witch" at the annual Moth Night hosted by the Bohart Museum of Entomology on Saturday, July 12.A White Witch, that is. It's the legendary moth, Thysania agrippina, from the family Erebidae. It's also called the Ghost Moth, Great Gray…

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Lorquin's admiral. (Photo by Marilyn Sexton)

Article

Admiring the Lorquin's Admiral

July 10, 2025

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

What a delight to see!When Fairfield resident and butterfly aficionado Marilyn Sexton spotted on her patio a butterfly that she'd never seen before, she grabbed her cell phone and took some images and a video.Brown-black wings, each lined with a row of white spots. Orange tips on the forewings. …

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