Bug Squad

"Stop and smell the roses." How many times have you heard that? It's usually from someone urging us to slow down, to savor life, and to pay attention to the pleasures. Like fragrant roses.

What are you doing the day BEFORE the Super Bowl? Thinking about that battle in New Orleans? Getting ready to settle in for the Harbowl? Wondering who's going to win the Vince Lombardi trophy? How about heading over to the University of California, Davis, campus for "Super Science Saturday"?

It's not often that "beer, butterfly and Obama" land in the same sentence. But such was the case Monday, Jan. 21 for butterfly expert Art Shapiro, professor of evolution and ecology at the University of California, Davis.

When it comes to honey bee health, beekeepers know that the Varroa mite (Varroa destructor) ranks as "Beekeeping Enemy No. 1." These are terrible blood-sucking parasites that attack bees and raise havoc in the hive. They transmit a variety of diseases and can destroy a hive.

The bush germander (Teucrium fruticans) is definitely a great fall-winter plant that's a magnet for bees. Just look at the bees that frequent the germander in the Hagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven on Bee Biology Road at UC Davis.