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.

Gray Hairsteak, Strymon melinus, nectaring guara. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Streak of Gray

August 25, 2014

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Are you on a winning streak? Or a losing streak? Or somewhere in between? The Gray Hairstreak butterfly (Strymon melinus) is always on a streak--a gray streak.

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Praying mantis hides beneath the petals of a Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Miss Is as Good as a Smile

August 22, 2014

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Our buddy, the resident praying mantis, appears to be in perfect form. Crouched beneath the Mexican sunflower (Tithonia), he glistens in the early morning light, as honey bees, long-horned bees, Gulf Fritillary butterflies and fiery skippers search for food.

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Honey bees flying in formation toward an artichoke in bloom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Artichoke in Bloom: Bee Food

August 21, 2014

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Bee food. That's what the globe artichoke is. Bee food. Many of us let our artichokes flower, not because we don't like the vegetable, but because we like bees better.

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Cabbage white butterfly in mid-flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Luck of a Lady in White

August 20, 2014

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

There's something about the cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae) that makes folks foam at the mouth.

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A drone (male bee) emerging. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Keeping Bees

August 19, 2014

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

So you want to keep bees in your backyard... When do you start? What should you do? Newly retired Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, continues to field questions.

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