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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. 

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Nazzy Pakpour's German cockroaches. (Photo by Nazzy Pakpour)

Nazzy Pakpour: Cockroaches, Coffee and 'The New Normal'?

September 22, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 “Today in my adventures as a biotech founder, I dissected out the guts of German cockroaches while students gathered around to take turns doing the same. Is this normal? Probably not. Is it my new normal? Absolutely.”So wrote UC Davis alumna Nazzy Pakpour, co-founder and chief executive officer of…
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Monarch advocates gathering in Phoenix, Ore. (Photo courtesy of David James)

Phoenix Rising, Monarchs Migrating, But...

September 21, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Yes, there are images! Washington State University professor/entomologist David James shared some of his photographs after radio-tagging or "e-tagging"  22 adopted monarch butterflies on Sept. 17 in Phoenix, Ore.As part of his Adopt-a-Monarch research program, he e-tagged a total of 200…
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Overwintering monarch butterflies in Santa Cruz

Wings Up, Garvey! Let's Go!

September 18, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Wings up, Garvey! Let's go!This year we adopted a migratory monarch through the Adopt-a-Monarch program of Washington State University entomologist David James, who is radio-tagging monarchs in Idaho and Oregon and recording their movements as they head toward their overwintering sites in coastal…
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Art depicting wetlands by Diana Almendariz

Good Fire, Living Water, Great Exhibit

September 17, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 Oh, the secrets of the wetlands...Mark your calendars! You won't want to miss: the YoloSol Collective's wetlands exhibition, "Good Fire, Living Water: The Gifts of a Marsh Economy" at the Davis Arts Center.Opening Sunday, Sept. 20 and continuing through Monday, Nov. 13, it will include an interactive …
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Newly released ladybug ready to take flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

What's Not to Love About Ladybugs?

September 16, 2026
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
 What's not to love about ladybugs?Well, they're actually lady beetles, because they are not true bugs (family Hemiptera), but beetles (family Coleoptera). Scientists have described about 5000 species worldwide, and about 450 in North America. Last Monday 250 beetles, more or less, graced our…
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