Backyard Orchard News
'Belize Bioblitz' at the Bohart on Sunday, Sept. 18
The "Belize Biobliz for the Bohart" was an un-believable trip! A group of scientists associated...
An orchid bee heads for wintergreen oil. This photo was taken during the Bohart Museum's collection trip to Belize. (Photo by Fran Keller)
Davis teen Mark deVries (his mother Fran Keller co-led the Belize trip) pins a moth in Belize. (Photo by Fran Keller)
This is a large moth that visited the blacklighting set-up. (Photo by Fran Keller)
The Bohart Museum crew participates on its first hike in Belize, led by Dave Wyatt and Fran Keller. (Photo by Fran Keller)
Sacramento City College professor Dave Wyatt and Folsom Lake College assistant professor Fran Keller, co-leaders of the Belize expedition, show some of the insects collected on the Belize trip. (Photo courtesy of Fran Keller)
Ever Seen a Pink Praying Mantis?
Have you ever seen a pink praying mantis, Stagmomantis californica? No? Now you have. Adrienne...
Davis resident Adrienne Austin-Shapiro photographed this pink praying mantis, Stagmomantis californica, outside a pizza business in Davis.
This is a female Stagmomantis californica, commonly known as a California mantis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Migrating Monarchs Lovin' the Tithonia
Presidential candidate Herbert Hoover campaigned for "a chicken in every pot and a car in every...
First in series of four photos: Two monarch butterflies meeting in a Tithonia patch in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Second in series of four photos: Two monarch butterflies, one nectaring, one investigating. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Third in series of four photos: Two monarch butterflies interacting in the Tithonia patch. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Fourth in series of four photos: Two monarch butterflies taking flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Meet You at the Bohart!
If you've never visited the Bohart Museum of Entomology at the University of California, Davis, or...
Retired entomologist and Bohart Museum associate Norm Smith engages visitors as he talks about moths at the July 30th Bohart Museum open house. Smith received his doctorate in entomology from UC Davis with major professor Richard Bohart, for whom the museum is named. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Nan Rowan of Davis talks to entomologist and UC Davis graduate student Jessica Gillung (foreground) at the open house on July 30. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Selfies are fun to take at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. Here Monica Ballard of Rancho Cordova smiles for the camera as an Australian walking stick obliges. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Bohart Museum of Entomology director Lynn Kimsey oversees the global collection of insects, which numbers nearly eight million. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Protect bees from pesticides by using bee precaution ratings from the UC ANR Statewide IPM program.
Various insects, birds, and other animals pollinate plants. Bees, especially honey bees, are the most vital for pollinating food crops. Many California crops rely on bees to pollinate their flowers and ensure a good yield of seeds, fruit, and nuts. Pesticides, especially insecticides, can harm bees if they are applied or allowed to drift to plants that are flowering.
Our mission at the University of California Agricultural and Natural Resources (UC ANR), Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program (UC IPM) is to protect the environment by reducing risks caused by pest management practices. UC IPM developed Bee Precaution Pesticide Ratings to help pest managers make an informed decision about how to protect bees when choosing or applying pesticides. You can find and compare ratings for pesticide active ingredients including acaricides (miticides), bactericides, fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides, and select the one posing the least harm to bees.
Ratings fall into three categories. Red, or rated I, pesticides should not be applied or allowed to drift to plants that are flowering. Plants include the crop AND nearby weeds. Yellow, or rated II, pesticides should not be applied or allowed to drift to plants that are flowering, except when the application is made between sunset and midnight if allowed by the pesticide label and regulations. Finally, green, or rated III, pesticides have no bee precautions, except when required by the pesticide label or regulations. Pesticide users must follow the product directions for handling and use and take at least the minimum precautions required by the pesticide label and regulations.
A group of bee experts in California, Oregon, and Washington worked with UC IPM to develop the Bee Precaution Pesticide Ratings. They reviewed studies published in scientific journals and summary reports from European and United States pesticide regulatory agencies. While the protection statements on the pesticide labels were taken into account when determining the ratings, it is important to stress that UC IPM's ratings are not the pollinator protection statements on the pesticide labels. In a number of cases, the ratings suggest a more protective action than the pesticide label.
The UC IPM ratings also include active ingredients that may not be registered in your state; please follow local regulations. In California, the suggested use of the bee precaution pesticide ratings is in conjunction with UC Pest Management Guidelines (for commercial agriculture) and Pest Notes (for gardeners). Each crop in the UC Pest Management Guidelines has a link to the Bee Precaution Pesticide Ratings database and provides guidance on how to reduce bee poisoning from pesticides.
For more information on protecting bees from pesticides, see UC IPM's Protecting Natural Enemies and Pollinators, and use the Bee Precaution Pesticide Ratings.