When honey bees become trapped in a milkweed’s elaborate pollination system and die, what are the ecological consequences? Is the presence of dead bees a deterrent to future visitors, such as honey bees (Apis mellifera) and non-Apis visitors? Do the dead bees result in an influx of predators, like ants? 

Professor Louie Yang, a community ecologist in the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, will be the speaker at the Pacific Coast Entomological Society (PCES) meeting, set for 1 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 24 in Room 122 of Briggs Hall.

Yang, whose research encompasses monarchs and milkweed, will discuss  “Why I Study Insect Ecology in the Field."

The Bohart Museum of Entomology at the University of California, Davis, is showing several insect-themed displays in the Vacaville Museum’s six-month-long gallery exhibit, “The Art of Death," underway through Nov. 15 at 213 Buck Ace., Vacaville.

The Bohart Museum, home of a global collection of eight million insect specimens, is sharing educational information involving multiple insect species, as well as the specimens.

Picture perfect!

Ceremonies recently took place to celebrate faculty who received the highly competitive UC Davis Academic Senate awards, and staff who received the inaugural Chancellor's Outstanding Staff Awards. Among the recipients:

Community ecologist Louie Yang, a UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology professor known as  “a phenomenal  teacher, mentor and an incredibly strong advocate for students” is the recipient of the UC Davis Academic Senate’s 2024 Distinguished Teaching Award, Undergraduate Student Level.