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.

ROCK PURSLANE (Calandrinia grandiflora) opens in the morning sun. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Like a Rock

May 5, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The rock purslane (Calandrinia grandiflora) attracts its share of insects. This morning the brilliant magenta blossoms drew honey bees, carpenter bees and hover flies.

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CRANE FLY, also known as a "mosquito hawk," nestles among the blades of grass. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Not Your Basic Giant Mosquito

May 4, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

It looks like a giant mosquito. But it isn't. It's a crane fly (family Tipulidae), also known as a "mosquito hawk." It's a slender, long-legged insect that cats like to target. Our cat, Xena the Warrior Princess, loves to bat them out of the air--and then look around for more.

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THIS REGULARLY WATERED PLANT at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis, provides a steady supply of water for bees. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

C'mon In, the Water's Fine!

May 1, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Ever seen bees at a watering hole? Bees not only bring back nectar, pollen and propolis to the hive, but also water.

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Pollen-packing honey bee in winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) in Storer Gardens, University of California, Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What's Happening with the Bees?

April 30, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

What's happening with the honey bees? Those following the mysterious phenomonen known as colony collapse disorder (CCD)--characterized by bees abandoning their hives--are eagerly waiting the latest developments.

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BUTTON WILLOW--This photo of a honey bee nectaring a button willow appears in the New York Times' article on "Let's Hear It for the Bees" by guest writer Leon Kreitzman. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey on a Yolo County farm tour)

Yes, Indeed, Let's Hear It for the Bees

April 29, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Great article in the Tuesday, April 28 edition of The New York Times on "Let's Hear It for the Bees." And did I mention that the photo accompanying the article is one I shot last year on a Yolo County farm tour? The bee is nectaring a button willow (Cephalanthus occidentalis).

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