Bug Squad

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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 young honey bee foraging on a cherry blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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About That Cherry Tree...

February 17, 2014

Did he do it? Probably not. Did he admit it? No, if he didn't do it. Historians agree that the infamous story about George Washington cutting down his father's favorite cherry tree and then admitting it ("I cannot tell a lie") is probably just that--a story. A myth. Didn't happen.

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Ladybugs (lady beetles) "keeping busy" on brittlebush. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Happy Valentine's Day!

February 14, 2014

Happy Valentine's Day! While everyone else hands out little pink candy conversation hearts proclaiming "Bee Mine," "Miss You," "Call Me," "Kiss Me," and "I Love You," insect enthusiasts post photos of bugs "keeping busy.

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This is a feral honey bee colony in a backyard in Vacaville, Solano County. Containing European honey bees, it was a joy to the resident before it collapsed. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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All Abuzz Over Feral Bees

February 13, 2014

All of Los Angeles seems abuzz about a new bee ordinance. Associated Press reporter Gillian Flaccus wrote that a man illegally keeping bees on the roof of his West Los Angeles home may not have to worry any more since the City Council voted Wednesday, Feb.

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Honey bee heading toward rock purslane, Calandrinia grandiflora. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Can Bees Have Heart Attacks?

February 12, 2014

"Can bees have heart attacks?" We know that honey bees work hard. They forage for food within a four-mile range of their hive. They can fly up to 15 miles per hour, and their wings can beat about 200 times per second, or 12,000 beats per minute.

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Ladybug drying its wings after falling into a swimming pool. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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World's Best Bug Blogs

February 11, 2014

There are lots of blogs out there, but not too many people blog about bugs. Fact is, bugs bug people. Birds bug bugs. Bugs bug bugs. If you've ever seen a praying mantis lying in wait for a bee or a ladybug snatching an aphid, or a dragonfly grabbing a hover fly, you know they do. Bugs bug bugs.

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