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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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Jasmine Morisseau, 10, holds a male praying mantis, a Stagmomantis limbata, the tiniest warrior at the Bruce Hammock Lab Water Balloon Battle. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

How This Tiny Warrior Crashed the Hammock Lab Water Balloon Battle

July 15, 2019
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
He wasn't invited, but he crashed the party anyway. A few minutes before the 16th annual Bruce Hammock Lab Water Balloon Battle began on the Briggs Hall lawn at the University of California, Davis, water warrior Jasmine Morriseau, 10, noticed "something" on the head of her twin brother, Cedric.
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A Western tiger swallowtail nectaring on a butterfly bush. Note that it is missing part of its tail. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Western Tiger Swallowtails: Not All Are 'Picture Perfect'

July 11, 2019
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It was "hit and miss." The predators hit, and they missed. Oh sure, they took a chunk out of these Western tiger swallowtails, but as they say, "a miss is as good as a mile." The predators? Could have been a hungry bird, praying mantis, or a spider.
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