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.

A cabbage white butterlfy, Pieris rapae, heads for lantana in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Spotting the Cabbage White Butterfly

October 15, 2018

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

They're everywhere. But they're not welcome. Agriculturists who commercially grow cabbage and other cucurbits aren't fond of the cabbage white butterlfy, Pieris rapae, because its larvae are pests that ravish their crops. No welcome mat for them.

View Article

This winning image of a wasp mimic, Ceriana tridens, ovipositing in the fissures of a tree, will be showcased at the Entomological Society of America meeting in November in Vancouver,B.C. (Photo by Alexander Nguyen)

International Exposure for Three UC Davis-Affiliated Photographers

October 15, 2018

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Images by three UC Davis-affiliated photographers will be among those displayed at the international Insect Salon photography competition at the Entomological Society of America's meeting, Nov. 11-14 in Vancouver, B.C.

View Article

Butterflies showing mutated wings on their right sides. This image was used in one of Arnaud Martin's research publications. (Credit: Nathalie Vessillier)

Oct. 19th Seminar at UC Davis: Do Butterflies Dream of Genetic Tattoos?

October 12, 2018

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Do butterflies dream of genetic tattoos? That's part of the creative title of a seminar that Arnaud Martin, assistant professor of biology, George Washington University, Washington, DC, will deliver next week to the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.

View Article

Honey bees, the most important pollinators, also produce honey. This image was taken at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

'Honey, I Hardly Know Ya!' The UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center Can Change That!

October 11, 2018

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

"Honey, I hardly know ya!" The UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center can change that! Want to learn more about the product that honey bees make? The UC Davis Honey and Pollination Center is offering a Sensory Evaluation of Honey Certificate Course, Oct.

View Article

Green darner dragonfly, Anax junius, in Benicia State Historical Park. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Find the Green Darner

October 10, 2018

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Find the green darner. Trying to spot the green darner dragonfly, Anax junius--so named because of its resemblance to a darning needle--is like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack. But there it was, camouflaged in shrubbery on Sept. 23 in the Benicia Capitol State Historical Park.

View Article