Free talk: Zombees and other Pollinator Tales

The insect kingdom is full of strange tales – few weirder than how a tiny North American fly has learned to parasitize honey bees, injecting eggs into the abdomens of unsuspecting worker bees, which then show zombie-like suicidal behavior.

Hear the fascinating story and learn more about native pollinators and threats both to native and European honey bees with Dr. John Hafernik, professor of biology at San Francisco State University since 1977 and past president of the California Academy of Sciences. His almost-chance discovery of a North American fly controlling the behavior of European honeybees – right on the SFSU campus - led him to found the nationwide citizen-science "Zombee Watch" project.

Refreshments 7 PM, talks promptly at 7:30 PM. Talks are free, but seating is limited.