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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 monarch caterpillar munching on a milkweed leaf. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Good News on the Monarch Front

December 10, 2024
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Good news on the monarch front. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced a proposal to list the monarch butterfly as a threatened species "with species-specific protections and flexibilities to encourage conservation" under Section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
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A honey bee heading toward almond blossoms. Managed bees such as bumble bees and honey bees are used to transfer a powder form of a biological control agent from flower to flower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

UC Davis Apiculturist: Apivectoring Defined

December 6, 2024
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Do you know what apivectoring is? Bee scientist Elina Lastro Nio, associate professor of Cooperative Extension, Apiculture, and a member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology (ENT) faculty, defines it in a recent edition of Bee Culture.
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A honey bee today (Dec. 5) forms the centerpiece of a mallow, Anisodontea sp. "Strybing Beauty." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

U.S. Honey Bee Losses Highest Since 2010-11

December 5, 2024
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
The American Bee Journal (ABJ) and Bee Culture just released the preliminary results of the annual U.S. Beekeeping Survey and the news is not good. "U.S. beekeepers lost an estimated 55.1 percent of their managed bee colonies in 2023-24--14.
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