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. Feedspot lists it as one of the top entomology blogs on the Internet.

Saying it With Flowers--And Bugs

July 23, 2010

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Michael Parrella knows his bugs--and flowers. Flowers? He was just elected a member of California Floriculture Hall of Fame for distinguished leadership and service to the floral industry.

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Haven for Diversity

July 22, 2010

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The Hagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at the Harry H. Laidlaw Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road, University of California, Davis, is a study in diversity.

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Sunny Sunflowers

July 21, 2010

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

If you enjoy sunflowers--and the seeds and oil--thank a bee. Sunflowers, native to the Americas, are spectacular, especially when you encounter a field of them. If you look closely, you'll see honey bees, sunflower bees and bumble bees working the flowers. It's pollination at work.

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Please Pass the Ants

July 20, 2010

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

You gotta love those ladybugs. Ladybugs, aka ladybeetles (family Coccinellidae), are best known for devouring aphids, those pesky little critters that suck plant juices. But have you ever seen ladybugs gobbling ants? There's a three-way predator-prey relationship here.

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Heaven Scent

July 19, 2010

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The wild roses planted last fall in the Hagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, University of California, Davis, are both "heaven sent" and "heaven scent." The fragrance is delightful.

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