What to See and Do, 15th Annual UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day

The 15th Annual UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day, set Saturday, Feb. 21 and featuring 12 museums or collections across campus,  is a "Super Science Day" where you watch a carnivorous plant eat a fly,  pet a stick insect, photograph a bald eagle, time-travel two billion years, stare down a T. rex, learn how to plant a pollinator garden, try your hand at flintnapping, laugh at yeast jokes, and take home seed cookies for the pollinators. 

The event, free and family friendly, and within a time frame of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., is a place where visitors can engage one-on-one with scientists. 

It is a day to discover, explore and connect, said committee chair Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator for the Bohart Museum of Entomology. 

The list of museums and collections open, with text provided by the organizers:

Anthropology Museum

 The Anthropology Museum is temporarily housed in Wickson Hall, West Entrance, while Young Hall is undergoing renovations. Hours: 12 noon to 4 p.m.

"Anthropology is the study of what makes us human! Join us on the east side of Wickson Hall at the picnic tables to learn about and try your hand at the 3 million-old technology of stone-tool production of flintknapping. Learn about the arts through time, from Paleolithic cave paintings in France, to Canadian Inuit printmaking traditions. Join us inside the East Lobby of Wickson Hall where you will see more ways humans merge art and nature through a visual exhibit prepared by student interns. Head up one flight of stairs to learn about hominin evolution through their fossil remains and about how our skeletons work. You will also learn about the archaeological history under your feet."

Arboretum and Public Garden

Arboretum and Public Garden, Habitat Gardens in the Environmental GATEway, Hours: 12 noon to 4 p.m.

3 p.m.: Unveiling of two newly completed murals behind the Arboretum Plant Nursery on Garrod Drive. They are the work of urban landscape entomologist Emily Meineke, director of the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program and her students (ENT 001: "Art, Science and the World of Insects"), and  UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emerita Diane Ullman, emerita director of the Art/Science Fusion Program and volunteers. See Meineke's Climate Adaptation Living Lab (CALL). "The two murals are the first half of a 4-mural project displaying a cross-section of California’s diversity, spanning from the coast to the Sierras," Meineke says. "The murals being unveiled are of the coast and the Central Valley. They are 15’ by 5’ large format, high-relief pieces, each made by one quarter of ENT 001 students."

"The UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden is a living plant museum featuring more than 25 different plant collections from California and around the world. Come visit us from noon to 4 p.m. in the Arboretum’s Environmental GATEway to explore the diversity in our landscapes and learn more about urban habitats from our Learning by Leading students and sta. This year our theme is Nature Prescription (Rx). Whether it’s birding in the waterway, planting an acorn, or envisioning your own climate-ready garden, our activities will illustrate how appreciating the biodiversity in your daily life can support your mental and physical well-being."

Bee Haven

Bee Haven, 1 Bee Biology Road, off Hutchison, then Hopkins Road. Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

"Visit the UC Davis Bee Haven and explore a vibrant pollinator garden home to more than 200 plant species that support honey bees and native pollinators. The haven is a half-acre pollinator demonstration garden installed in the fall of 2009. This interdisciplinary space blends art, education and ecological design to create meaningful habitat and learning opportunities. Guests can enjoy a hands-on experience in the garden, take home seed cookies to plant, ask questions about all things bees, and view an observation frame for a rare, up-close look at bees in their natural environment. It’s a chance to learn and connect and be inspired by the world of pollinators."

Bohart Museum of Entomology

Bohart Museum of Entomology, Room 1124, Academic Surge Building, and hallway, 455 Crocker Lane. Hours: 12 noon to 4 p.m.

"The Bohart Museum, founded in 1946, houses eight million specimens. Jeff Smith, curator of the Lepidoptera collection and fellow Bohart associate Greg Kareofelas will answer questions about the butterfly collection. Attendees will meet and chat with scientists from all walks of life who love insects and spiders. Faculty, students and staff will showcase ants, native bees and trapdoor spiders. At the live petting zoo, you can hold, touch and photograph insects such as Madagascar hissing cockroaches and walking sticks."

The Academic Surge hallway will spotlight the work of several labs. Among them: native bees from the Rachel Vannette, Neal Williams and Felicity Muth labs; spiders from the Jason Bond lab; ants from the lab of new faculty member Rodolfo da Silva Probst, and orchid bees from the Santiago Ramirez lab. 

Botanical Conservatory

Botanical Conservatory, Kleiber Hall Drive. Hours: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

"The UC Davis Botanical Conservatory is home to a diverse collection of some 4,000 plant species from around the world, providing a unique space for education, research, and conservation. 

"Walk through a tropical oasis and explore the different species of plants that the Botanical Conservatory has on display. 

"Along with tropical plants, you will see succulents, carnivorous plants, chocolate and vanilla plants, the corpse plant and more. Enter on the south side of the greenhouse between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Staff and volunteers will be on hand to answer all your questions."

California Raptor Center

California Raptor  Center, 1340 Equine Lane, off of Old Davis Road. Hours: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

"The California Raptor Center, part of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, currently houses 30 resident birds. The permanent residents are non-releasable raptors. 

"Most of these birds of prey have permanent injuries or other disabilities that compromise their ability to survive in the wild. The center is dedicated to the rehabilitation of injured and orphaned raptors. 

"The educational ambassador raptors will be viewable on exhibit, with some of them out "on the glove" for up close encounters. The ambassador birds represent 12 different species of raptor that can be found in California, from the diminutive American kestrel to the iconic bald eagle. Staff and volunteers will be available to answer questions and share information about our local birds of prey. "

Center for Plant Diversity (Herbarium)

Center for Plant Diversity.  1026 Katherine Esau Science Hall. Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

"Come visit the Center for Plant Diversity. It is comprised of 300,000 vascular plant specimens, 2,400 bryophyte specimens, 2,000 macroalga specimens, 1,700 lichen specimens, and 600 conifer cones! It is a reference library of pressed plants (including mosses, lichens and algae) used for research, education and plant identification. 

"We will have demonstrations of plant pressing and specimen mounting, an exhibit of African plants which are part of our Tropical African Plants Digitization Project, and tours of our collection room."

Design Museum

Design Museum, 124 Cruess Hall, 375 California Ave. Hours: 12 Noon to 4 p.m.

"The Design Museum explores how design shapes, improves and makes viable the objects, technology and environments we use, inhabit and experience every day." The schedule:

1 to 3:15 p.m.: Moo-vin’ Moo-seum, mobile art gallery, bringing art to public transit in Davis, , to park outside Cruess Hall  The project is a collaboration among Unitrans, Aggie Arts, and Creative Media.

 1 p.m., “Village Homes: A Radical Plan” documentary film screening, 1002 Cruess Hall Theater

2 p.m.: Panel discussion about the neighborhood’s influence and its future, 1002 Cruess Hall Theater 

2:30 p.m.: Reception, Cruess Hall Open Lab.

Museum of Wildlife and Fish Biology

Museum of Wildlife and Fish Biology, Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane. Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.  

"This is a vertebrate museum dedicated to education, outreach, conservation and research. Join us for a fun and educational day as you journey through our vertebrate collections, with more than 70,000 species of birds, mammals, fish, amphibians and reptiles. This is the only day visitors will be able to go on tours of our research collections, granting a behind-the-scenes view of museum science. Want to visit at your own pace? We will have several stations showcasing our specimens, including bats, skulls, owls and much, much more. Come for a hands-on experience you’ll never forget! There also will be children’s crafts and live specimen preparation demonstrations, showing you the steps of museum taxidermy, from start to finish. We hope to see you there!"
 

Nematode Collection

Nematode Collection, 1026 Katherine Esau Science Hall. Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

"Visitors can meet scientists and explore the diversity of nematodes that parasitize both animals and plants. We will have lots of nematode samples on display, including nematodes that infect animals and plants, nematodes found in whales, and fresh tomato roots infected with root-knot nematodes. The visitors will be able to get an up-close view of what these tiny organisms look like and learn about the ways they infect their hosts. This is a great opportunity to ask questions and dive deep into how nematodes shape ecosystems, agriculture and animal health. Visitors also will get to collect cool nematode stickers designed by our talented undergraduate Lisa Nakano, and have fun playing with magic worms."

Paleontology Collection

Paleontology Collection, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences Paleontology Collection, Room 1309, Crocker Lane. Hours: 12 noon to 4 p.m.

"Embark on an expedition through time that spans two billion years in the Earth and Planetary Sciences Department. You will explore samples from our fossil collection that represents the entire tree of life. There will be scientists and students present to answer all of your questions and guide your journey through time. Stare down a full-size Tyrannosaurus rex skull as you enter our building and watch out or the saber-toothed cat! There will be activities for adults and children alike. A table of samples to be touched will be waiting for you at the end of your trek. Join us between the hours of noon and 4 p.m."

Phaff Yeast Culture Collection

Phaff Yeast Culture Collection, Robert Mondavi Institute Brewery and Food Processing Facility. Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

"The Phaff Yeast Culture Collection is one of the largest public collections of wild yeasts in the world, with more than 9,000 strains belonging to 1,500 different species, including upwards of 200 novel species that are not yet named. Continually: Tours of the UC Davis Teaching and Research Winery, the first LEED-Platinum Certified Winery in the world.  (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building certification program used worldwide.) Tours are at 10:30, 11, 11:30, 12:30, 1 and 1:30. Yeast collection curator Kyria Boundy-Mills will give a short talk, “How Scientists Name New Yeast Species” at noon in the Food Science Classroom, Room 1106 of the Brewery, Winery, and Food Science (BWF) Building."

Special Attraction: Speakers' Series

There will be a speakers' series from 4 to 5 p.m. in the Silverado Vineyards' Sensory Theatre of the Sensory Building, Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, 392 Old Davis Road. The schedule:

• 4 p.m.: Pallavi Shakya, doctoral candidate, lab of nematologist Shahid Siddique, "Into the Nematode World."
• 4:15 p.m.: Samantha "Sam" Murray, education and garden coordinator of The Bee Haven and member of the bee lab of Elina Niño, who will present "Creating Your Own Pollinator Haven"
• 4:30 p.m.: Tracy Thomson, PhD, UC Davis Earth and Planetary Sciences, research assistant, "Hobnobbing in the Cretaceous: What's Up With Dinosaur Forelimbs?" He will present a new hypothesis about the function of alvarezsaurid or long-legged dinosaurs.
• 4:45 p.m.: Kyria Boundy-Mills, PhD, collection curator and research microbiologist, Phaff Yeast Collection. "Creative Uses of Yeasts." 

More than 300 faculty, students and staff will be staffing the displays.  Maps can be downloaded on the website and also will be available onsite. Food vendor trucks will be parked by the Katherine Esau Science Hall.

The event was founded by the Bohart Museum of Entomology and the Botanical Conservatory.

For those who wish to donate funds to support this free and family friendly event, the donation page  is at https://give.ucdavis.edu/CAES/BIOFUND