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
Jumping spider eyes the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Spiders? Scary? Spooky?

October 31, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
"Look, there's a spider!" A sure-fire way to frighten arachnophobics is the very mention of "spiders"--especially on Halloween. Spiders aren't insects but arthropods, order Araneae. They have eight legs, which according to some, are seven legs too many.
View Article
Primary Image
Honey bee foraging on mustard. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Good News for the Bees!

October 29, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Good news for the honey bees! And none too soon. U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today (Oct.
View Article
Primary Image
Medical entomologist Anthony Cornel with a snake in Brazil.

Anthony Cornel Knows Mosquitoes

October 28, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Medical entomologist Anthony Anton Cornel knows his mosquitoes--and a few snakes, too. When he was doing research in Brazil in September, he draped a snake around his neck and posed for the camera. His favorite research subjects, though, are mosquitoes.
View Article
Primary Image
UC Davis scientists in the Walter Leal lab have discovered the odorant receptor in the Culex mosquito that repels DEET. From left are
project scientist Pingxi Xu; postdoctoral scholar Young-Moo Choo; AgChem graduate student Alyssa De La Rosa; and Professor Leal. (Photo credit: Academic Technology Services/Mediaworks)

Unraveling the Mystery of DEET

October 27, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
You spray DEET on your arms, and those pesky mosquitoes leave you alone. It works. However, not everyone wants to use DEET, a synthetic insect repellent. There's that smell, for one thing.
View Article