Bug Squad

A daily (M-F) blog launched Aug. 6, 2008 and about the wonderful world of insects and those who study them. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Primary Image
A male black-faced bumble bee, Bombus californicus, sleeps on a lavender blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sleeping in the Lavender

May 27, 2015
It's a delight to see boy bumble bees sleeping overnight in the lavender. Two species of bumble bees--Bombus vosnesenkii and Bombus californicus--have been slumbering in our lavender for the past several weeks.
View Article
Primary Image
Bee hives in a sunflower field along Pedrick Road, Dixon, Solano County, in July 2012. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Mark Winston to Relate Lessons from the Hive

May 27, 2015
Lessons from the hive! Sound familiar? Honey bee scientist and noted author Mark Winston will speak on Bee Time: Lessons from the Hive at a special seminar hosted by the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology on Friday, June 5 at 10 a.m. in 122 Briggs, Kleiber Hall Drive.
View Article
Primary Image
Caught in flight: Flameskimmer dragonfly,Libellula saturata. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Little Wind Beneath His Wings

May 26, 2015
It was windy enough to trigger a small craft advisory. Yet here comes a flameskimmer dragonfly (Libellula saturata) around noon on Monday, Memorial Day, circling our little bee garden. He chases a few flying insects around and then perches on a bamboo stake to eat them.
View Article
Primary Image
A farmer's hand and a very beneficial insect, the lady beetle, aka ladybug. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Down on the Farm...

May 25, 2015
Down on the farm...the Loma Vista Farm.... When the Loma Vista Farm--part of the Vallejo City Unified School District--recently hosted its annual Spring Festival, scores of folks came to see the animals, buy a plant or two, and participate in the many activities.
View Article
Primary Image
The championship Linnaean Team, Pacific Branch of the Entomological Society of America: (from left) Jéssica Gillung, Brendon Boudinot, and Ralph Washington Jr. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What's That Bug?

May 22, 2015
It's exciting, entertaining and educational to watch the Entomological Society of America's Linnaean Games. Teams of graduate or undergraduate students challenge one another in a college bowl-like competition about entomological facts, trivia and noted entomologists. You have to be quick.
View Article