Bug Squad

A daily (M-F) blog launched Aug. 6, 2008 and about the wonderful world of insects and those who study them. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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Professor Joanna Chiu in her UC Davis lab in 2010. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Not the Only Champion at Home!

March 26, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 When the exciting news broke today that 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…
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Adekunle Adesanya, Ph.D., samples for the western tarnished plant bug Lygus hesperus in alfalfa in Walla Walla, Wash., in July 2020. (Photo by Peter Alege)

Lessons from Generalist Pest Herbivores

March 25, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Friday, March 20 marked the first day of spring, and Wednesday, April 1 marks the first of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology's nine spring seminars. The seminars will take place on Wednesdays at 12:10 p.m. in 122 Briggs Hall, UC Davis campus, through May 27. They also will be on…
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Grasshoppers ready to eat. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Bug Squad: Article

Hop to It!

March 24, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Oh, the quotes about grasshoppers! "War among grasshoppers delights the crow.""Two ants do not fail to pull one grasshopper.""The restless grasshopper only finds rest in the gizzard of a bird.""A grasshopper that sleeps about will soon be awake in a lizard's mouth."Crows, ants, birds, lizards, who…
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The American dog tick, Dermacentor occidentalis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ticks Can Do More Than 'Tick You Off'

March 23, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Ever found a tick on yourself, a friend or Fido?Yes? As the weather warms up, ticks are becoming more and more active. Ticks can do more than just "tick you off."Kim Douglass, a public health biologist with the Vector-Borne Disease Section, California Department of Public Health (CDPH),…
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Lady beetle eating aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Aphid Eaters

March 20, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 All hail the aphid eaters!Lady beetles, aka ladybugs, emerge in spring from winter hibernation, and do so with voracious appetites. Is your rose bush drawing aphids? Bring on the beetles.  The lady beetle eats some 50 aphids a day--what some may call "a 50-course meal." In it lifetime, it can…
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