Backyard Orchard News
Drone Acrobatics
The drone fly, aka European hover fly, aka syrphid fly, doesn't get as much press as the other...
A drone fly, aka hover fly and syrphid fly, engaging in a little acrobatics over an Iceland poppy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Hover fly heading for an Iceland poppy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
This photo shows why drone flies are pollinators. Check out the pollen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Eighteen Myths About Insects and Spiders
Oh, the myths about insects and spiders! It was a fun and educational afternoon when the UC Davis...
The beginning of a black widow spider tattoo, compliments of entomology Jessica Gillung of the Bohart. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Entomologist Fran Keller, who received her doctorate from UC Davis, smiles as student Jessica Gillung asks her which insect she wants. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A youth looking at a ladybug display. The premise, "You can tell the age of a ladybug by counting its spots, is false. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Myths and Gifts
Myths and gifts... When the UC Davis Bohart Museum of Entomology hosts its open house from 1...
Robbin Thorp with two of the books he co-authored. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Scholarships available for California Naturalist training in the Central Valley.
Applications are now being accepted for scholarships to attend California Naturalist training in the San Joaquin Valley and central Sierra region in 2015.
To become a certified California Naturalist, trainees take part in 40 hours of classroom and field courses and complete a capstone project. More than 700 California Naturalists have been certified by UC Cooperative Extension since the program's inception in 2010. The 2015 training sessions will be offered with the Sierra Foothill Conservancy, the UC Merced Vernal Pools and Grasslands Preserve and the UC Merced Sierra Nevada Institute.
Partial scholarships will be awarded in two categories: Student Scholars Award and Service Award. The Student Scholars Awards are open to graduating high school seniors and currently enrolled college students. The Service Awards are open to people engaged in work (volunteer or paid) that directly impacts under-served communities.
The scholarships are intended to engage participants who will apply their experience by taking action in their own communities. To be eligible for a scholarship, aspiring naturalists are invited to fill out the online application at http://ucanr.edu/CalNatScholarship. Application review will begin in December 2014 and continue until all the scholarships have been awarded. Read more.
California Naturalist training in an outdoor classroom.
For the Love of Bats
Most of us think about bats at least twice a year: during National Pollinator Week, when bees,...
Rachael Long beneath the Yolo Causeway with a bat detector. Notice the bats in the photo. (Photo courtesy of the California Farm Bureau Federation)