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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. 

There's Gold on Them Thar Roses

March 24, 2017
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
There's gold on them thar roses. No, not the kind of gold found during the California Gold Rush (18481855) that brought some 300,000 folks to the Golden State. These are gold eggs from the multicolored Asian beetle, Harmonia axyridis, that we found on our Sparkle-and-Shine roses last week.
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Congrats, UC Davis Ecologist Louie Yang

March 22, 2017
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Congratulations, Louie Yang! The ecologist, an associate professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, has been named the faculty recipient of the 2017 Eleanor and Harry Walker Academic Advising Award from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CA&ES).
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Aphids--It's What's for Dinner!

March 20, 2017
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
"Well, yes, I would like some aphids for dinner," said every lady beetle (aka ladybug) everywhere. With the lush green growth of spring, come aphids (the prey) and lady beetles (the predators). And now, if you look closely, you'll see clusters or rows of lady beetle eggs on your roses.
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