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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. 

Honey bee foraging on tower of jewels. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Just Bee-lieve

April 26, 2013
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
When there's so much pain, grief and sorrow in the world, it's time to shut off the TV, log off the computer, exit the house, and photograph honey bees. Watching honey bees foraging in the tower of jewels, Echium wildpretii, is therapy enough.
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Bumble bee, Bombus vandykei, foraging on phacelia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Going Native

April 24, 2013
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
The first thing you notice when you walk up to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis, are the natives. Native plants, that is. California golden poppies and phacelia are among the plants sharing the "Pollination Habitat" bed.
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Two ladybugs in a tower of jewels, Echium wildpretii. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ladybugs Coming Up in the World

April 23, 2013
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Decisions, decisions... Where's the best spot for the new residents of my garden? I acquired two ladybugs last Saturday during the 99th annual UC Davis Picnic Day.
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Yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, on Scabiosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sounding the Alarm for Bumble Bees

April 22, 2013
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Bumble bees are major contributors to pollination of crops and wildflowers throughout the temperate northern hemisphere. Many species have declined, contributing to fears that we might face a 'pollination crisis.'" So says David Goulson, professor at the University of Stirling, U.K.
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