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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. 

Eddie Dunbar, founder and president of the Insect Sciences Museum of California, photographs insects.

Knowing About Knowland Park's Biodiversity

May 26, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's all about knowing the biodiversity in Knowland Park. And trying to save it from development. Scientists and citizen-scientists will gather Sunday, June 1 in the western highlands of the Oakland park to conduct a "bioblitz"--or a tally of the biodiversity of animals and plants living there.
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A male yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, appears to be "resting" on lavender. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Boy Bumble Bee

May 23, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Don't you just love watching bumble bees? This morning we watched a yellow-faced bumble bee (Bombus vosnesenskii) foraging on lavender. It moved quickly from one blossom to another, barely allowing us time for a "bee shoot." It was "bee gone" every time we aimed the camera. Finally, it cooperated.
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A handful of bees, held by Barbara Allen-Diaz. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bee Stunt: A First and a Last

May 22, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It was Norm Gary's last bee wrangling stunt. And it was Barbara Allen-Diaz' first close-up encounter with bees. The occasion: Barbara Allen-Diaz, vice president of the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR), was on the UC Davis campus recently to fulfill her UC Promise for Education.
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Red-veined meadowhawk, Sympetrum madidum, perches on a stake. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Love Those Dragonflies!

May 20, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Don't you just love it when a dragonfly perches on a stake in your back yard and decides to stay for a while? That's what happened Sunday.
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