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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. 

Everything's Coming Up Bees at UC Davis!

January 29, 2016
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Everything's coming up bees! A number of eminent bee scientists will be speaking soon at UC Davis. They include David Tarby, Gene Robinson and Dennis vanEngelsdorp. David Tarpy, Wednesday, Feb.
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Flowering Jade Draws Some Pollinators

January 28, 2016
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's not spring yet, but don't tell that to the pollinators at the Benicia Capitol State Historic Park. We traveled to the state park on Monday, Jan. 25 to see if we could find a bumble bee foraging on the jade blossoms. Or more specifically, the black-tailed bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus.
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Mead and Music: Beginning of a UC Davis Feast

January 27, 2016
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's getting to look a lot like...February. When you see honey bees foraging on the early blooming oxalis, that's a sure sign that February is approaching. And that means it's time for some mead, music and a bee-influenced dinner.
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Surprising Results in Monarch Study

January 26, 2016
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
You can't really say that "monarch butterflies are back in the news again," because they've never really left. Thankfully! The more we know about monarch butterflies, the better we can understand them and help conserve them.
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