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.

NEWLY EMERGED--A newborn bee struggles to right herself. Note the swath of yellow hair on her thorax. As she ages, the thorax will be smooth and mostly devoid of hair. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Fuzzy Wuzzy Was a Bee

November 11, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

It's Tuesday, Nov. 11, Veterans' Day. I walked into our bee friendly garden hoping to find a honey bee. One buzzed erratically over the purple sage and rock purslane and disappeared. The rest are nestled in a hive somewhere, trying to ward off the cold.

View Article

IN SUPPORT OF URBAN BEE DIVERSITY--Jaime Pawelek of UC Berkeley’s Department of Organisms and the Environment, discussed “Native California Bees: Looking for Cheap Urban Real Estate” at the Nov. 6 meeting of the Northern California Entomology Society. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Looking for Cheap Urban Real Estate

November 10, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Chances are if you walked up to a group of people and asked "Have you seen a Megachile today?" they'd stare at you blankly. What's a Megachile? It's a native bee, also known as a leafcutter bee. When most people think about bees, they think about honey bees, which are native to Europe.

View Article

PRESENTATION--Entomologist William Roltsch of the California Department of Food and Agriculture discusses the light brown apple moth at the Nov. 6th meeting of the Northern California Entomology Society. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Good Question

November 7, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Most entomologists I know maintain a keen sense of humor.

View Article

MALE LIGHT BROWN APPLE MOTH--The light brown apple moth is a native of Australia. (Photo courtesy of David Williams, principal scientist, Perennial Horticulture, Department of Primary Industries, Victoria, Australia.)

Not Again!

November 6, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Not again! The light brown apple moth, also known as "the eat-everything moth" because its larvae dine on about 250 host plants, is back in the news again. We received a press release yesterday (Nov.

View Article

MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGIST--Thomas Scott, professor of entomology at UC Davis, is one of the leading authorities on dengue. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

War on Dengue Fever

November 5, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

UC Davis medical entomologist Thomas Scott is mentioned in "The War on Dengue Fever," a news article published Nov. 3, 2008 in the New York Times. Scott is a leading expert on dengue fever, a mosquito-borne disease transmitted by Aeges egypti.

View Article