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.

Bug Squad: Article

Getting the Red In

September 26, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

If you love pomegranates, you can thank a honey bee. If you love capturing images of pomegranates, you can thank a honey bee. And, if you love juicing them and making pomegranate jellyas I doyou can thank a honey bee. The honey bee makes it all possible.

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UC Davis mosquito researcher Chris Barker will speak on "Environmental Drivers of Large-Scale Spatial and Temporal Patterns in Mosquito Abundance and Virus Transmission in California” on Nov. 26 from 12:10 to 1 p.m. in 122 Briggs, UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bug Squad: Article

From Beetles to Skeeters

September 25, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

So, you want to become an entomologist... Entomologists, future entomologists and others interested in science are looking forward to the fall seminars sponsored Oct. 1 through Dec. 3 by the Department of Entomology, University of California, Davis.

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A newly emerged bee at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis. During the busy season, a worker bee will live only four to six weeks.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

It's All About the Bees

September 24, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

It's all about the bees. When A. G. Kawamura, secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and the newly selected State Apiary Board meet from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 3 at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr.

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A honey bee on sage. Fossil evidence indicates that the very first insects inhabited this earth 400 million years ago. Honey bees existed at least by 7000 B.C., per a primitive drawing in a cave wall in eastern Spain. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bug Squad: Article

Holy Moly!

September 23, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

Quick! How long have insects inhabited this earth? If you're taking a biology or an entomology course, you'll be asked that question on an exam. If you're attending the Entomological Society of America conference Nov. 16-20 in Reno, you probably already know that. A good answer: 400 million years.

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A drone (front) starts his takeoff to find a virgin queen. At left is a worker bee, his sister. Drones don't survive the winter; the girls kick the boys out of the hive.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Bug Squad: Article

Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou?

September 22, 2008

By Kathy Keatley Garvey

It's tough being a drone honey bee this time of year. The drones, or male bees, don't survive the winter. Bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey of the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis admits to having a soft spot for drones.

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