Bug Squad

Bumble bee on bull thistle at Bodega Bay

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UC ANR is renovating its website. The Bug Squad blog, by Kathy Keatley Garvey of the University of California, Davis, is a daily (Monday-Friday) blog launched Aug. 6, 2008. It is about the wonderful world of insects and the entomologists who study them. Blog posts are archived at https://my.ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/archive.cfm

A common crane fly, Tipula oleracea, on a tower of jewels, Echium wildpretii. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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You Don't Have to Crane Your Neck to See Them

April 26, 2021

They're out there, and you don't have to crane your neck to see them. Some folks mistakenly call them "mosquito hawks" or "mosquito eaters," but they are neither. They are crane flies, members of the family Tipulidae of the order Diptera (flies). They're everywhere.

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Participants in the California Master Beekeeper Program's online introduction to mead will learn about honey and mead. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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'Bee on Board' with Mead: California Master Beekeeper Program Hosting Course

April 22, 2021

Want to celebrate May Day by learning about mead, the world's most ancient alcoholic beverage? Remember mead? It's also known as "honey wine," created by fermenting honey with water. Sometimes mead makers add fruits, spices, grains, and hops. There's a "me" in mead.

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A honey bee touches down on a rock purslane, Calandrinia grandiflora. This plant yield red pollen. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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A Touch of Red on Earth Day

April 22, 2021

It's Earth Day, an event we celebrate every April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protections on our troubled planet. This year's theme: "Restore Our Earth." U.S. Sen.

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A soldier beetle (family Cantharida) looks out over a milkweed in search of more aphids. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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The Red Coats Are Coming

April 21, 2021

The Red Coats are coming. The Red Coats are coming. No, not an army of soldiers. Soldier beetles. These insects (family Cantharida) resemble the uniforms of the British soldiers of the American Revolution, which is apparently how their name originated.

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Entomologist Jeff Smith, curator of the Lepidoptera collection at the Bohart Museum of Entomology laments the declining population of monarchs and advocates that people plant milkweed and nectar sources in their gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Jeff Smith Zooms in on 'Mimicry in Butterflies and Moths'

April 20, 2021

Butterflies and moths totally fascinate entomologist Jeff Smith, the 32-year volunteer curator of the Bohart Museum of Entomology's Lepidoptera collection. Smith loves talking about them, engaging folks face-to-face, and answering their questions.

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