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.

MALE CARPENTER BEE, Xylocopata tabaniformis orpifex, robbing nectar from sage. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Catching up with the Carpenters

August 4, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Catching up with the carpenters is not always easy. Not the construction workers--the carpenter bees. They move fast as they buzz from flower to flower. California is home to three carpenter bee species, says native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis.

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BUMBLE BEE (Bombus bifarious) nectaring coastal goldfields at Bodega Bay. This species is the second most common bumble bee species at Bodega Bay. This is a worker or female. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bumble Bees at Bodega Bay

August 3, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Thars gold in them thar hills. And also bumble bees. If you visit the Sonoma County coastal town of Bodega Bay, and drive up to Bodega Head overlooking the ocean, youll see a carpet of gold flowers known as coastal goldfields or Lasthenia minor.

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CLASSIC RETINUE--A queen bee is surrounded by her royal attendants--the retinue. (Photo courtesy of Susan Cobey, Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis)

Hail to the Queen

July 31, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Oh, to be a queen bee... Her Royal Highness (HRH) is quite pampered. She's always surrounded by her royal attendants, called the retinue. They tend to her every need. They feed and groom her. They keep her warm or cool, depending on the temperature inside the hive.

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CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLY(Pieris rapae) nectars catmint. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Lady in White

July 30, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae) looks like a Lady in White when she perches on catmint. The colors are striking: A long, flowing white gown nestled among the rich lavender blossoms and earthy green leaves.

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ZAIN SYED, chemical ecologist at UC Davis, holds a bag of 2000 Culex mosquitoes he trapped between Davis and West Sacramento. He is using them for his research. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Mosquito Heaven

July 29, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Chemical ecologist Zain Syed of the Walter Leal lab, University of California, Davis, knows just where to find mosquitoes for his research. Rice fields. He's been collecting up to 3000 mosquitoes a night along the Yolo Causeway, located on Interstate 80 between Davis and West Sacramento.

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