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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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Monarch nectaring on milkweed in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What You Can Do on California Biodiversity Day

September 5, 2025
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 What are you doing on California Biodiversity Day? That's Saturday, Sept. 6, but the celebration of diverse life continues through Monday, Sept. 14.You can join the  Find 30 Species for California Biodiversity Day project on iNaturalist, and submit observations of 30 wild species between…
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Female European mantis, Mantis religiosa, in Rio Visa on Labor Day. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Shall We Prey, Pray or Protest?

September 3, 2025
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Was she protesting, preying or praying? A very large praying mantis showed up at a pro-democracy event in Rio Vista, Calif., on Labor Day.The mantis sailed over my head, "like a bird on the wing," and then dropped to the ground, landing on rough gravel. It looked too heavy and clumsy to fly. But…
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Joseph Tauzer in an almond orchard in Hamilton City. (Photo by Kian Nikzad)

Honoring Joseph Tauzer: The Multitasker

September 1, 2025
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Congratulations to UC Davis staff research associate Joseph Tauzer, who manages the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility and who serves three labs within the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology.Tauzer is a winner in the UC Davis Staff Assembly's coveted 2025 Citations of…
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Queen bee and workers. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Honey Bees Labor Every Day

September 1, 2025
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 As we celebrate Labor Day, let's also celebrate the honey bees: the queens, worker bees (females) and drones (males). They take no vacations, no holidays, and no breaks, and receive no overtime pay or retirement pensions.  The queen takes no maternity leave. In peak season, she will lay 1000…
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