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

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Thrips is a major pest of lettuce production in Salinas. (Illustration courtesy of Daniel Hasegawa)

Research Entomologist Daniel Hasegawa Targets Thrips

January 18, 2021
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
They're small, about 1 mm long or less, with characteristic fringed wings. They fly, but not well. But thrips do pack a powerful punch. A major pest of many agricultural crops, including lettuce, they damage plants by (1) sucking their juices and (2) transmitting viruses.
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This manzanita plant at the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden, near Old Davis Road, is where UC Davis postdoctoral researcher Charlie Nicholson captured an image of the first bumble bee of the year. (Photo by Charlie Nicholson)

Why Bumble Bee Expert Robbin Thorp Would Have Been Proud

January 15, 2021
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Robbin Thorp would have been proud of what happened on Thursday, Jan. 14. When the UC Davis emeritus professor of entomology, a global authority on bumble bees, died June 7, 2019 at age 85, scientists found a way to memorialize him and what he loved.
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Screen shot of the UC Davis COVID-19 symposium. It's online on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Paq0ka3NIP0

Highly Successful UC Davis COVID-19 Symposium Is Now Online

January 14, 2021
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
If you missed the recent UC Davis COVID-19 Symposium on saliva and sewage tests, plus vaccines, not to worry. It's online on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Paq0ka3NIP0 "We had a total of 1,234 registrants," reported UC Davis Distinguished Professor Walter Leal, the organizer and moderator.
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