The Department of Entomology’s fall lecture series is set to begin next week with a talk about biocontrol of tea pests.

The series is free and open to the public. Talks are scheduled from 12:10 to 1 p.m. Wednesdays in 122 Briggs Hall. Here is the lineup:

Oct. 7 — Biological control scientist Madoka Nakai, associate professor, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology: “A Novel Protein from Lepidopteran Virus Killing Endoparasitoid and Viral Control for Tea Pests in Japan.”

Oct. 14 — Plant taxonomist Dean Kelch, assistant researcher, University and Jepson Herbaria, UC Berkeley: “Mimicking Science Interpretation — A Visit to the Creation Museum.”

Oct. 21 — Professor James R. Carey, UC Davis Department of Entomology, “Demography of the Finitude: Insights into Lifespan, Aging and Death from Insect Studies.”

Oct. 28 — Insect virus researcher Michelle Flenniken, Haagen-Dazs Postdoctoral Fellow, UC Davis: “Microarray-Based Pathogen Detection and the Antiviral Role of RNA Interference in Honeybees.”

Nov. 4 — Chemical ecologist Jonathan Gershenzon, professor, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany: "Plant Volatiles—Versatile Agents of Defense."

Nov. 18 — Community ecologist and population biologist Matt Forister, assistant professor, University of Nevada-Reno: “Anatomy of a Niche Shift: Lycaeides melissa and the Colonization of Alfalfa,” about the “agricultural” Melissa Blue butterfly.

Dec. 2 — Michael Parrella, professor and chair, UC Davis Department of Entomology: “An International Perspective on Sustainable Production in Greenhouses.”