Bug Squad

A daily (M-F) blog launched Aug. 6, 2008 and about the wonderful world of insects and those who study them. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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Norm Gary is both a professional bee wrangler and a musician. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

One Last Time

October 25, 2011
The bees have it, The Beez Kneez, that is. The Beez Kneez, a Sacramento-based band led by Norm Gary, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis, will reunite for one last performance on Wednesday, Oct. 26 at the Straw Hat Pizza, 2929 Mather Field Road, Rancho Cordova.
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Equine Control Officer Laurie Christison of the Center for Equine Health captured this cell-phone image of a female velvet ant.

'A Strange Little Bug'

October 24, 2011
Picture this. Staff at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine's Center for Equine Health encountered "a strange little bug" that they'd never seen before outside their office Friday on Old Davis Road.
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Ladybug, aka lady beetle, searching for aphids. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Luck Be a Lady

October 21, 2011
Photographers never tire of capturing images of ladybugs, aka lady beetles. First of all, they're beneficial insects. You know when you photograph them that they're about to scoot, crawl or fly off to grab a tasty lunch--an all-you-can-eat aphid buffet. Second, they're colorful.
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Noted insect photographer Alex Wild captured this spectacular image of sweat bees on sideoats grama. (Photo by Alex Wild and used with permission.)

Call of the (Alex) Wild

October 20, 2011
There are insect photographers and there are insect photographers. There are those who point and shoot, those who shoot and point, and those who see the world through a viewfinder. And then there's Illinois-based Alex Wild, who is in a class by himself.
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Spotted cucumber beetles crawls along a tangerine leaf. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Flying Cucumber (Beetle)

October 19, 2011
You usually see them crawling around, but never about to fly. The Western spotted cucumber beetles (Diabrotica undecimpunctata) is one of California's most common insects. And though quite attractive in coloring, it's a major agricultural pest.
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