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.

The Bee Course

August 23, 2013

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

If you want to learn about bees--and learn it from the experts--The Bee Course is the place to be. It's an annual workshop held at the Southwestern Research Station (SWRS) in Portal, Ariz.

View Article

Wilton beekeeper Brian Fishback wearing a bee beard at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis. This photo appeared in Kari-Lynn Winters' book, Buzz About Bees. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Brian's Bee Beard

August 22, 2013

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Its good to see so many childrens books being published about bees. One of the latest ones is Buzz About Bees (Fitzhenry & Whiteside) by former elementary school teacher Kari-Lynn Winters, who asked forand receivedone of my photos of beekeeper Brian Fishback of Wilton wearing a bee beard.

View Article

Jupiter's Beard and a single pipevine swallowtail. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

This Beard Never Looked So Good

August 21, 2013

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Aah, is there anything more beautiful than pipevine swallowtails nectaring on the rosy pink blossoms of Jupiter's Beard?

View Article

Honey bee in flight, heading toward a Japanese anemone and unaware of the jumping spider. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Drama in the Garden

August 20, 2013

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Take one honey bee and one Japanese anemone. Then add one jumping spider. The results don't always turn out so well. But today in the East Asian Collection Garden of the UC Davis Arboretum, everything turned out well--for the honey bee.

View Article

Honey bee on an apple blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The ABCs of the Bee-a-Thon 3

August 20, 2013

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

What Emmet Brady describes as "the wonderful world of pollination" will come to life on Wednesday, Aug. 21. Brady, a cultural entomologist, hosts the Insect News Network on KDRT 97.4 FM Radio, Davis, and every year he hosts a "Bee-a-Thon" to spotlight honey bees.

View Article