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.

The Story Behind This Bumble Bee Pollen Load

February 15, 2016

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

What a treat to find not one--but five yellow-faced bumble bees (Bombus vosnesenskii) foraging on a rosemary hedge on Valentine's Day. Feb. 14 was a perfect day for foragers, as the temperature climbed into the '70s, an unusually warm February day. The site: The Glen Cove Marina in Vallejo, Calif.

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Got 'em!

February 12, 2016

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

"Got 'em!" That's the message we've all been waiting for.

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How Many Overwintering Monarchs in California?

February 11, 2016

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

There's good news and not-so-good news about the Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count in California. Last December the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation released preliminary figures. Now they've announced the final tally: almost 272,000 monarchs (Danaus plexippus).

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Real Reason for Flowers? It's All About Sex

February 10, 2016

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

You could say that noted entomologist/author Stephen Buchmann has a thing for buds, bees, beetles and butterflies...buds that burst into flowers, and bugs that burst into pollinators.

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Bee My Valentine

February 8, 2016

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Bee my valentine. There's something about a honey bee foraging on a flowering quince that makes you long for Valentine's Day and the end of winter. Flowering quince (Chaenomeles sp.) is one of the first flowers of the year to bloom. And bloom it does, in between the rain drops and rays of sunshine.

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