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Bug Squad

Bug Squad blog image depicts a honey bee sting in action.

Welcome to the Bug Squad blog! The Bug Squad blog was launched Aug. 6, 2008 and is a daily blog (Monday through Friday). It showcases entomologists and the work they do.  The blog focuses on scientists in the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, the Bohart Museum of Entomology, Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, the UC Davis Bee Haven, and assorted campuswide events, including UC Davis Picnic Day, UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day, and Bohart Museum open houses. The blog spotlights insects, including bees, butterflies, dragonflies, and praying mantises, as well as arachnids such as jumping spiders and crab spiders. Author and photographer is Kathy Keatley Garvey, communications specialist, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, and a longtime journalist and community scientist with two degrees from Washington State University.  She is a member of the Entomological Society of America (ESA) and the Association for Communication Excellence (ACE). Her blog posts and images have won international awards from ACE and ESA and appeared on journal and magazine covers. She shoots primarily with a Nikon Z-8 mirrorless camera, a Nikon D500 and Nikon 800, with assorted macro lenses. 

A male California dogface butterfly, Zerene eurydice. (Photo by Greg Kareofelas)

Ready to Learn About the Flying Pansies at the Bohart Museum on July 16?

July 8, 2022
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
You won't want to miss this. It's an opportunity to learn more about the biology and history of California's state insect, the California dogface butterfly. The Bohart Museum of Entomology will showcase and celebrate the butterfly at its open house from 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, July 16.
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An assassin bug, Zelus renardii,waits to ambush prey on a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

No 'Assassination' Today!

July 7, 2022
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
No assassinations today! But an "assassination attempt." There it was, a leafhopper assassin bug, Zelus renardii, waiting for prey atop a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifola in a Vacaville pollinator garden. Yes, it's native to North America.
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A red flameskimmer or firecracker skimmer (Libellula saturata) perches on a tomato stake in a Vacaville pollinator garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

'My Old Flame' Returns

July 6, 2022
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
"My old flame" returned Saturday, July 2. A strong north wind aided him. It wasn't the "old flame" from last year, but a new generation. Still, what a beauty of a dragonfly--a red flameskimmer or firecracker skimmer (Libellula saturata), native to Western North America.
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Hurrah for the red, white and blue! And the yellow. Honey bee mobiles were spinning in the wind at a Bodega Bay campsite. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Hurrah for the Red, White and Blue! And the Yellow...

July 4, 2022
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Today is the Fourth of July, and what better time to proclaim: "Hurray for the red, white and blue!" And the yellow. On a camping trip last week to Doran Regional Park, Bodega Bay, we admired our neighbors' display of American flagsbordered with a dozen honey bees. These bees, however, didn't buzz.
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