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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. 

A crab spider dining on a stink bug. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Why You Should Love Spiders--Or at Least Like Them!

March 7, 2019
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
We recently posted information about the Bohart Museum of Entomology's upcoming open house on "Eight-Legged Wonders," and several people responded that they absolutely HATE spiders, and that we should have prefaced it with a SPOILER ALERT: "SPIDER PHOTOS! BEWARE!" Spiders--especially jumping spiders...
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Honey bees at work. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sharing 'The Secret Life of Bees'

March 6, 2019
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
"Where can kids learn beekeeping for free?" someone asked us last week. One of the ways is through the 4-H Youth Development Program. Who can join 4-H, which stands for head, heart, health and hands and which follows the motto, "making the best better?" It's open to all youths ages 5 to 19.
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Hummingbirds eat insects and insects eat hummingbirds. Here a praying mantis lurks by a hummingbird feeder. It was quickly removed to another spot. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What You May Not Know About Hummingbirds

March 5, 2019
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Pollinators aren't just bees, butterflies, beetles and bats. They're also birds, like hummingbirds. Ornithologists tell us that hummingbirds can easily eat their weight in a day, feasting on carbohydrates (nectar from blossoms and sugar water from feeders) and protein (insects and spiders).
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