Bug Squad

Honey bee guru Eric Mussen is retired but the "R" word isn't stopping him. Mussen, who served 38 years as California's Extension apiculturist, based at the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, has changed the "R" word into a "K" word. "K" for keynote speaker.

The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation issued news today that is both disturbing and hopeful. Disturbing in that the monarch butterfly population (Danaus plexippus) has declined by more than 90 percent in under 20 years.

Are you on a winning streak? Or a losing streak? Or somewhere in between? The Gray Hairstreak butterfly (Strymon melinus) is always on a streak--a gray streak.

Our buddy, the resident praying mantis, appears to be in perfect form. Crouched beneath the Mexican sunflower (Tithonia), he glistens in the early morning light, as honey bees, long-horned bees, Gulf Fritillary butterflies and fiery skippers search for food.

Bee food. That's what the globe artichoke is. Bee food. Many of us let our artichokes flower, not because we don't like the vegetable, but because we like bees better.