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.

Monarch butterfly showing signs of a predator encounter. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Broken Wing

September 21, 2015

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Broken Wing belongs here. And that's a good thing, because he won't live long. A male monarch that we've nicknamed Broken Wing due to a predator mark, hangs out on our milkweed, butterfly bush and Mexican sunflower (Tithonia). He's probably looking for a meal and a mate.

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James R. Carey, who joined the UC Davis faculty in 1980, is the recipient of the Entomological Society of America's 2015 Distinguished Distinguished Achievement in Teaching Award. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

James R. Carey: Highest Honor for Teaching

September 18, 2015

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The University of California, Davis, prides itself on teaching, research and public service. A few faculty members excel at all three (they're called triple threats) and distinguished professor James R. Carey of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology is one of them.

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A monarch laying an egg on her host plant, milkweed. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

From an Egg to a Caterpillar to a Chrysalis to a Monarch

September 17, 2015

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Have you ever seen a monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) lay an egg on her host plant, the milkweed? Have you ever seen a close-up of the egg? The larva or caterpillar? The chrysalis? The eclosure (when the adult emerges from the chrysalis)? It's a fascinating sight. Not all eggs will make it.

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A banded garden spider (Argiope trifasciata) straddling lavender stems. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Saga of a Spider's Kill

September 16, 2015

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

For more than two weeks now, we've been watching a banded garden spider (Argiope trifasciata) trap and wrap its unfortunate prey (fortunate if you're a spider, unfortunate if you're the prey) snared in its web.

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A pipevine swallowtail, Battus philenor, flashes its colors. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Never Say 'Pipe Down' to a Pipevine Swallowtail

September 15, 2015

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Never say "pipe down" to a pipevine swallowtail. It's a butterfly we treasure. You may have seen it nectaring on your butterfly bush. It's black with blue iridescent upper wings and orange arrowhead-like spots on its inner wings.

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