Backyard Orchard News

Household Vampires Want Your Blood

What do you think of when someone mentions "household vampires?" Fleas? Ticks? Bed bugs?...

Aedes aegypti, the yellow fever mosquito. (Photo courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Aedes aegypti, the yellow fever mosquito. (Photo courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Oops! Wrong Species, Wrong Gender

So here's this male monarch nectaring on a pink zinnia in a Vacaville pollinator garden. The...

A painted lady, Vanessa cardui, touches down next to a male monarch, Danaus plexippus, on a pink zinnia in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A painted lady, Vanessa cardui, touches down next to a male monarch, Danaus plexippus, on a pink zinnia in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male monarch lets the painted lady know that his advances are unwelcome. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male monarch lets the painted lady know that his advances are unwelcome. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Okay, I'm leaving" The painted lady takes off as the monarch also prepares to leave. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"Okay, I'm leaving" The painted lady takes off as the monarch also prepares to leave. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"I'm leaving, too!" The male monarch takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

"I'm leaving, too!" The male monarch takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

WSU-Tagged Monarchs May Be Heading Your Way

Seen any tagged monarchs lately? If you live in California, tagged monarchs from the migratory...

A newly eclosed male monarch spreads its wings. In the back is a female. Both eclosed on Sept. 5 in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A newly eclosed male monarch spreads its wings. In the back is a female. Both eclosed on Sept. 5 in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A newly eclosed female monarch clings to a tropical milkweed leaf before taking flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A newly eclosed female monarch clings to a tropical milkweed leaf before taking flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Legendary Robbin Thorp: A Tribute Well Deserved

When UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal created a video tribute honoring the UC...

The legendary Robbin Thorp in front of an almond tree on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The legendary Robbin Thorp in front of an almond tree on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis campus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Monarch Takes Flight

A monarch on the move... When you see a monarch foraging on a flower, have you ever seen them--or...

A male monarch nectaring on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male monarch nectaring on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola, in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male monarch takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male monarch takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A few twists and turns, a jumble of colors and jagged lines, and the male monarch takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A few twists and turns, a jumble of colors and jagged lines, and the male monarch takes flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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