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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. 

A ladybug grabbing an aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Meet Our Garden Heroes at Bohart Museum Open House on March 2

February 28, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
If there's anything better than a ladybug eating an aphid, it's a ladybug devouring dozens of aphids. Get 'em! Ladybugs--actually, they're "lady beetles"--are garden heroes. And that's the theme of the Bohart Museum of Entomology's open house on Sunday, March 2 from 1 to 4 p.m.
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A female Valley carpenter bee buzzes in the almond blossoms. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Carpenter Bees Like Almond Blossoms, Too

February 27, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
We're accustomed to seeing honey bees pollinating the almonds. But carpenter bees do, too. We spotted a female Valley carpenter bee, Xylocopa varipuncta, foraging in an almond tree on Feb. 24 in a field adjacent to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr.
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Honey bee foraging on mustard. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Feeding the Bees

February 26, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Talk about good news. Honey bees will definitely benefit from the U.S.
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Ants by Alexander Wild.

A Book You Can't Refuse

February 25, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
If you want to learn more about ants, especially those in New York City, then here's a newly published book you can't refuse. And it's not only a book you can't refuse, but you can reuse over and over again. It's that fascinating. "Dr.
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