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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. 

Honey bee keeps a close eye on the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey(

'Quincing' Our Thirst

January 20, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
You can quench your thirst. And then you can "quince" your thirst. That would be a honey bee on a flowering quince. Yes, the flowering quince are flowering. And none too soon in our drab landscape, nearly devoid of color. Today the honey bees seems to be in a feeding frenzy.
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Lady beetle, aka ladybug, devouring an aphid. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What's for Lunch?

January 17, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
What's for lunch? If you're a lady beetle (aka ladybug), a good bet is you'll have one of those yummy, plant-sucking aphids. In fact, you'll eat your fill. Please do.
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Get parasitized! The sign at the Bohart Museum says it all. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Mighty Mites

January 16, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
The creative folks at the Bohart Museum of Entomology, UC Davis, have done it again. Among the many activities at their recent "Snuggle Bugs" open house was a "mite/art station.
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The three queen bumble bees (Bombus melanopygus). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The Lovely Ladies at the Laidlaw

January 15, 2014
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
So far, so good. The three queen bumble bees (Bombus melanopygus) we found buzzing around our porch light the night of Jan. 9 are still very much alive.
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