Backyard Orchard News
Don't Believe Everything You Read About Spiders--Or Anything Else for that Matter!
Just a hoax. A fear-mongering hoax. A so-called Facebook "public service announcement" on Aug. 21...
The woodlouse spider, Dysderca crocata, is neither a new species nor deadly, contrary to a Facebook hoax disguised as a public service announcement. (Photo by Michel Vuijlsteke, courtesy of Wikipedia)
This is a male woodlouse spider, Dysderca crocata. (Photo © Hans Hillewaert, courtesy of Wikipedia)
And the (Bee) Beat Goes On...
It was bound to happen. A "real" honey bee flying alongside "fake" bees on a bee crossing...
A honey bee flies in formation with "fake" bees on a bee crossing sign. Bees can flap their wings around 240 times per second. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
It's almost flyover time again. Blue spike sage (Salvia uliginosa) is in the foreground. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
How to Find a Praying Mantis
Do you know where your praying mantids are? Water a bush or a plant frequently visited by bees and...
A male praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, emerges from a pomegranate bush. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A female praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, strikes a pose. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
About Those Declining Meadow Spittlebugs along the California Coastlne...
Who knew they were declining? Well, ecologists Richard "Rick" Karban Mikaela Huntzinger of the UC...
A meadow spittlebug nymph at the Bodega Marine Reserve. (Photo by Mikaela Huntzinger)
A graphic from the UC Davis researchers' article in the journal Ecology.
Hear that Buzz? Saturday is National Honey Bee Day!
Hear that buzz? Tomorrow (Saturday, Aug. 18) is National Honey Bee Day. A small group of...
Postdoctoral scholar Laura Brutscher of the Elina Lastro Niño lab at UC Davis talks about who lives in the hive. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The youngsters enjoy dressing up in beekeeper protective suits and being photographed. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Extension apiculturist Elina Lastro Niño talks about the importance of pollination. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Wendy Mather of the California Master Beekeeper Program shows the youngsters bee specimens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Charley Nye, manager of the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Facility, introduces the students to honey varietals. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The students catch, examine and release bees with bee vacuum devices. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Marcel Ramos of the Niño lab opens a hive inside a netted enclosure. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)