Bug Squad

The Sting. (c) Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Looking for a specific Blog post?
Search Now
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.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Western tiger swallowtail, Papilio rutulus, lands on a butterfly bush. Note the stink bug on top. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Article

The Butterfly and the Stink Bug

June 30, 2015
It's sort of like "The Beauty and the Beast." Or "The Pollinator and the Pest." A gorgeous Western Tiger swallowtail (Papilio rutulus), seeking nectar from a butterfly bush, touched down and began to feed. It didn't take long for the butterfly to spot a stink bug crawling on top of the blossom.
View Article
Water mites on a damselfly. (Photo by Greg Kareofelas, taken with a Canon Elph)
Article

Mighty Mites!

June 29, 2015
If you've ever been "up close and personal" to a damselfly, you might have seen the water mites. Naturalist Greg Karofelas of Davis, an associate of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, has not only seen them, he has photographed them. See his truly spectacular photo below.
View Article
The taste of honey right from the hive--delicious! (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Article

Oh, Honey!

June 26, 2015
Oh, honey! Are you better than all the others? Make way for the Good Food Awards competition, opening July 6. This year is the second consecutive year for the honey category. Last year more than 50 beekeepers from throughout the United States entered their honey.
View Article
Cindy Carmouche of Vacaville captured this amazing photo of early instar redhumped caterpilllars eating the leaves of her French prune tree.
Article

Some Very Hungry Caterpillars

June 25, 2015
What an amazing photo! Vacaville resident Cindy Carmouche, a nurse at Kaiser Permanente, captured a photo of early instar redhumped caterpillars eating her French prune leaves. One look at this photo and you will marvel at some v-e-r-y hungry caterpillars.
View Article
Subscribe