Bug Squad

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. Feedspot lists it as one of the top entomology blogs on the Internet.

Honey bees at a water fountain at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Honey Bees and the Hot Spell

June 16, 2021

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Earlier this week the National Weather Service warned us about an excessive heat spell--"dangerous and record-breaking heat conditions" here in California's Central Valley and the foothills that may reach 100 to 113 degrees today (Wednesday) through Sunday.

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Close-up of a digger bee, Anthophora bomboides stanfordiana, on a sand cliff at Bodega Head, Sonoma County. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Digging the Digger Bees at Bodega Head

June 15, 2021

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

If you vacation at Bodega Bay--sometimes called "Blow-dega" due to whipping winds--you've probably driven to Bodega Head to watch for whales, see the waves crash against the cliffs, spot seabirds nesting in the rocks, or to observe such fauna as deer and red-tailed hawks on the horizon.

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Packing red pollen from lupine, Lupinus arboreus, a yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, heads toward more blossoms at Doran Regional Park, Bodega Bay. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Flight of the Bumble Bee

June 14, 2021

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Early scientists figured it was aerodynamically impossible for bumble bees to fly due to their size, weight and shape of their bodies in relation to their total wingspan. And then there were those air resistance issues.

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It's Friday Fly Day, so how about three green bottle flies on a catmint leaf? Imsge taken in Vacaville. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Happy Fly Day Friday!

June 11, 2021

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Happy Fly Day Friday! If you've ever wondered why entomologists and insect enthusiasts post images of flies on Friday, not to worry. They consider this "Fly Day." The Urban Dictionary defines Fly Day as "the day of the week when contract employees fly from their work site to their home location.

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A sweat bee, Halictus tripartitus, nectaring on a tower of jewels (Echium wildpretii) in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sweat Bee: Overlooked and Underloved

June 10, 2021

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Let's hear it for the sweat bee. It's one of the many tiny bees that ought to be honored and recognized during Pollination Week, June 21-27, but it's often overlooked. We've been seeing many of this species, Halictus tripartitus, in our pollinator garden in Vacaville.

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