Bug Squad

The Sting. (c) Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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/bugsquad/index.cfm. The story behind "The Sting" is here: https://my.ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7735.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Forest entomologists Steve Seybold (right) and Jackson Audley stand by a 150-year-old black walnut tree on the 100 block of E Street. It is dying of thousand cankers disease. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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A Sign of the Times: Why This Black Walnut Tree Is Dying

May 24, 2019
If you've ever walked into the courtyard on the 100 block of E Street in downtown Davis, Calif., you've probably noticed the massive black walnut tree near Sophia's Thai Bar and Kitchen. It's about 150 years old, 50 feet in height, and measures about five feet in diameter. And it's dying.
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An immature lady beetle (larvae) chowing down on an oleander aphid. This photo was taken on a milkweed plant in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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Hey, I'm Eating as Fast as I Can!

May 22, 2019
Have you ever seen the larva of a lady beetle (aka ladybug) dining on an aphid? Lights! Camera! Action! So here is this charming little immature lady beetle chowing down on an oleander aphid that has the audacity to infest the milkweed in our pollinator garden.
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Beekeeper Adelaide Grandia smiles through a pollinator cut-out board. Her grandfather is teaching her beekeeping. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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Hear That Buzz? It's World Bee Day!

May 20, 2019
Hear that buzz? Today is World Bee Day! We celebrate honey bees every day, but they are especially celebrated on May 20, World Bee Day. It's an annual day to raise awareness about the importance of bees and beekeeping.
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