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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This "floral bouquet" of milkweed contains four monarch eggs. Image taken in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Floral Bouquet Graced with Four Monarch Eggs

December 30, 2020
2020 was a troubling year for the monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus. The severe population decline led the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation to seek endangered species status from the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). USFWS announced Dec.
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A lady beetle, aka ladybug, covered with rain droplets on Artemisia in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Did You Celebrate Happy Solstice Day?

December 28, 2020
Did you celebrate Happy Solstice Day on Dec. 21? That's the astronomical moment, according to the Farmer's Almanac, "when the Sun reaches the Tropic of Capricorn" and "we have our shortest day and longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere in terms of daylight.
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Santa Claus greets a monarch, which scientists say may be heading for extinction. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Visit with Santa Claus on Christmas Morning

December 25, 2020
Christmas morning and the sights are bright. Santa came in his sleigh last night. He came with a whoosh and a ho-ho-ho. He came with a monarch and a no-no-no. "Don't let them get extinct," he said with a shout. And that's what endangered species are all about.
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