A new exhibit at Briggs Hall during the 112th annual UC Davis Picnic Day on Saturday, April 18 will feature the wetlands restoration project of medical entomologist-geneticist Geoffrey Attardo, associate professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and his colleagues.

Synthetic biologist Sean Leonard, research scientist at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory will present "Engineering Honey Bee Gut Bacteria to Activate Immunity and Limit Pathogens" at a UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology seminar on Wednesday, April 22 in 122 Briggs Hall.

He will speak at 12:10. His seminar also will be on Zoom. The Zoom link: https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/95882849672.

UC Davis Distinguished Professor Bruce Dupree Hammock (1947-2026) will be among the individuals remembered at the UC Davis Annual Remembrance Ceremony, scheduled from noon to 12:30 p.m., Monday, May 11 at the UC Davis Conference Center, 550 Alumni Lane.

When the UC Davis Entomology Graduate Student Association (EGSA) rolls out the racetrack for the Roach Races on Saturday, April 28  during the campuswide UC Davis Picnic Day, this will mark the 32nd year of the popular attraction.

 Steve Schutz, then a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Bruce Eldridge (1933-2025) lab, introduced the Roach Races to the UC Davis campus, in 1992. 

The UC Davis Bee Haven is sponsoring two nature journaling classes billed as “Relaxed Mornings Among the Bees and Blooms." 

A beginners' session for teens and adults is set for Saturday, May 2, and a session for young explorers (kindergarten age through fifth grade) will take place Sunday, May 3. Both will be led by naturalist, watercolorist and science educator Lorie Topinka  of Davis, former assistant Director of education at the California Academy of Sciences (CAS), San Francisco. 

What’s a picnic without bugs?

At the 112th annual campuswide UC Davis Picnic Day on Saturday, April 18, bugs are not only invited, but escorted. 

The "stars of the show" are the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology's line-up of cockroaches, flies, mosquitoes, ants, bees, tarantulas, stick insects, hornworms, lady beetles, nematodes and more at Briggs Hall. Favorite activities include the traditional cockroach races and maggot art.

Iris Rivera, a Chancellor Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Santa Cruz, will speak on "Uncovering the Complexities Behind Ecosystem Services: Pest and Disease Control" at the next seminar hosted by the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.

Her hybrid seminar begins at 12:10 p.m., Wednesday, April 15 in 122 Briggs Hall. The Zoom link: https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/95882849672. Urban landscape entomologist Emily Meineke, associate professor, is the host. 

Nematologist Shahid Siddique, associate professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, is the newly announced recipient of the 2026 Excellence-in-Teaching Award from the international Society of Nematologists.

He will be honored at SON’s 65th annual meeting, set July 6-10 in Baltimore, Md. 

UC Davis doctoral alumnus Mohammad Amir Aghaee, the entomology program leader at the California Polytechnic University Strawberry Center, will discuss "Berries vs Bugs: Challenges in Integrated Pest Management in California Strawberry Production" at a seminar hosted by the Department of Entomology and Nematology on Wednesday, April 8.

Molecular geneticist and physiologist Joanna Chiu, professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and a professor in the Department of Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, is a newly elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for her extraordinary achievements involving circadian clock research.