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.

THIS MALE green metallic sweat bee, Agapostemon texanus, looks as if someone poured fluorescent paint on it. It's about one-fourth the size of a honey bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Color It Metallic Green

October 2, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The green metallic sweat bee looks as if someone splashed green fluorescent paint on it. This uniquely colored bee is just one of some 1600 native bee species in California. It's about one-fourth the size of a honey bee and it's difficult to photograph because (1) it's tiny and (2) it moves fast.

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MALARIA RESEARCHER Win Surachetpong in the Shirley Luckhart lab at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Attacking Anopheles

October 1, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Anopheles gambiae, the mosquito that transmits malaria, has a new foe. And his first name is Win.

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WEST COAST LADY (Vanessa annabella) and a honey bee share the same sage, Salvia uliginosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The West Coast Lady and the Bee

September 30, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Summer is fading and the temperatures are dropping, too. You're more likely to see Vanessa. That would be Vanessa annabella, one of the Painted Lady butterflies.

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UP ON TOP--A tachinid rests on top of a lavender. This is a female of a Peleteria species, a common genus in southwestern United States. The genus is characterized by two prominent setae in front of the lower part of the eye.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Tiptoeing Through the Lavender

September 29, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Ever seen a tachinid tiptoeing through the lavender? The tachinids are parasitic flies that lay their eggs in hosts such as Lepidoptera (butterfly) caterpillars. As larvae, they live in and kill their hosts. As adults, they sip nectar and other plant juices.

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HONEY BEE pauses after nectaring the purple Penstamon and begins to extend her tongue. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Tongue in Cheek

September 28, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The honey bee nectaring the Penstemon, aka Beardtongue, in Tomales, Calif., didn't seem to mind my presence. Perfect. The amber-colored bee was foraging among the purple two-lipped flowers.

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