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.

VARROA MITE on drone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Mighty Mite

March 12, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The BBC this week examined colony collapse disorder (CCD), a mysterious phenomonen characterized by bees abandoning their hives. The adult bees buzz off, leaving the brood and stored food behind. They do not return.

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DARWIN--This piece at the Pence Gallery, Davis, is the work of ceramic artist Nuala Creed of Petaluma. Of her art she says: “As he sits holding butterflies and the jawbone of an animal, the chimp gazes directly at the viewer. His offering to us, his next of kin, is his curiosity of the natural world. His intelligence is shown by his inquisitiveness. His name is Darwin, in honor of Charles Darwin, whose work helped us realize that we humans are not above nature, but are of nature. The chimp may be asking us

Analyze This!

March 11, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

A chimpanzee holds a monarch butterfly in a ceramic art work titled Darwin. Human hands cradle insects and assorted objects in a ceramic work titled Analyze This. Those are just two of the art works featured in a juried show under way at the Pence Gallery, 212 D St., Davis.

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Largest Carabid Beetle in California

March 10, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Tomorrow's a good day to learn about carabid beetles. Kipling "Kip" Will, associate professor of insect systematics, Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at UC Berkeley, will discuss his research at a noon seminar, Wednesday, March 11 in 122 Briggs Hall, UC Davis.

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A HONEY OF A BEE, packed with pollen, heads for the nectarine blossoms. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Better than Cotton Candy

March 9, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

The skies brightened last weekend and the rain-weary honey bees returned to the nectarine blossoms in our yard They were in the pink again! Capturing images of the bees gathering nectar and pollen is more fun than eating cotton candy at a county fair. Springlike day. Radiant pink flowers.

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POLLEN LOAD--A pollen-packing bee at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility visits an almond blossom. This photo was taken March 5. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Pistol Packin' Mamas

March 6, 2009

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Pistol packin mamas have nothing on honey bees. Have you ever seen the pollen load that a honey bee carries? What's pollen? It's the fine, powder-like material produced by the anthers of flowering plants, or the grains that contain the male reproductive cells of a seed plant.

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