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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. 

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UC Master Gardener Banner at the Dixon May Fair

Got a Gardening Question?

May 8, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 While the hogs sleep, goats bleat, and roosters crow in the Livestock Barns at the Dixon May Fair, UC Master Gardeners from Solano County are inside the Southard Floriculture Building answering about plants and insects.“Why did my plant die?”"How can I grow great tomatoes?”"What can I do about all the…
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Yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, heading for phacelia.

About Those Native Bees...

May 7, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 You won't want to miss this seminar on native bees!UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow Magda Argueta-Guzmán of UC Merced will speak on "More Than Just Flowers: Resource Use in Native Bees" at the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology seminar at 12:10 p.m., Wednesday, May 13 in 122 Briggs Hall…
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A mayfly lands on an artichoke blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Art of Tying a Fly

May 6, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 "Want to learn how to tie a fly?"That's what the Fly Fishers of Davis ask as crowds pass by their table in the Briggs Hall courtyard every UC Davis Picnic Day.Briggs Hall is the home of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and the Fly Fishers are an important part of the department's …
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Blue orchard bee, Osmia lignaria, foraging on Iceland poppy. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

UC Davis Doctoral Students Win Major Fellowships

May 5, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Congratulations to a trio of UC Davis entomology doctoral students who just received major fellowships, funding totaling more than $500,000.Abigail "Abby" Lehner, a doctoral candidate in the lab of pollinator ecologist Neal Williams, professor of entomology, UC Davis Department of Entomology and…
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The many faces of the late UC Davis Distinguished Professor Bruce Hammock

UC Davis Planning Remembrance Ceremony

May 4, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 UC Davis Distinguished Professor Bruce Dupree Hammock (1947-2026) will be among the individuals remembered at the UC Davis Annual Remembrance Ceremony, scheduled from noon to 12:30 p.m., Monday, May 11 at the UC Davis Conference Center, 550 Alumni Lane.An internationally recognized scientist and an…
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