Bug Squad Logo

Bug Squad

Bug Squad blog image depicts a honey bee sting in action.

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. 

Like a hovering helicopter, the hover fly lingers over flowers in the Ruth Risdon Storer Garden, UC Davis Arboretum. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

To Bee or Not to Bee

September 16, 2008
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
To bee or not to bee. Not to bee. The flying insect hovering over the Ruth Risdon Storer Garden, UC Davis Arboretum, looked like a honey bee or wasp at first glance. It wasn't. It was a hover fly or syphrid fly from the order Diptera (Greek for "two wings") and family Syrphidae.
View Article
A pollen-packin' honey bee heads toward a gaura (Gaura linheimeri). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

High-Wire Act

September 15, 2008
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's like going to the circus. A bee circus. When you see honey bees gather pollen from a gaura (Gaura linheimeri), it's as if they ran off and joined the circus. You'll see hire-wire (er...high-stem) acts, somersaults, pirouettes, cartwheels and cliffhangers.
View Article
A honey bee heads for the colorful button-willows (Cephalanthus occidentalis).(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Cute as a Button (Willow)

September 12, 2008
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
A bee on a ball. When it flowers, the button-willow (Cephalanthus occidentalis), also known as willow, buttonbush, honey ball, and button ball (oh, that's so close to butter ball!) attracts honey bees and butterflies like you wouldn't believe.
View Article
The queen bee (the largest bee, center) is surrounded by her court, the worker bees, who take care of her every need. They feed her, groom her and protect her "and then they have the additional tasks of rearing and feeding her young," said bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. (Photo courtesy of Susan Cobey, UC Davis Department of Entomology)

The Queen Bee

September 11, 2008
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
If you were a queen bee, you'd be laying about 1500 to 2000 eggs today. It's your busy season. "She's an egg-laying machine," said bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey of the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis. "And she's the mother of all the bees in the hive.
View Article
A male gray hairstreak butterfly (Strymon melinus) nectars on sage. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Gray Hairstreak

September 10, 2008
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
"Omigosh, what's that? A gray hairstreak?" If it's in your hair, you consult a mirror, your favorite salon, or just ignore it. If you're an entomologist or a lepidopterist, a gray hairstreak is delightful.
View Article
Subscribe