Bug Squad

Bumble bee on bull thistle at Bodega Bay

Looking for a specific Blog post?

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

HOVER FLY, from the family Syrphidae swoops down on a dandelion claimed by a sweat bee. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

Squatters' Rights

August 24, 2009

Squatters' rights. A dandelion poking through the rocks near Nick's Cove on Tomales Bay, in Marshall, Sonoma County, seemed an unlikely host for squatters' rights. It first drew a tiny bee, barely a quarter-inch long.

View Article

HONEY BEE heads toward an almond blossom. Saturday, Aug. 22 is National Honey Bee Awareness Day. Without honey bees, we would not have almonds. Two hives per acre are needed to pollinate California's 700,000 acres. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

All Hail the Honey Bee

August 21, 2009

All hail the honey bee. Tomorrow (Saturday, Aug. 22) is the first-ever National Honey Bee Awareness Day, as proclaimed by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. It's "hive time" this insect has its own day.

View Article

HONEY BEE wings in motion. The bee can fly a distance of two to two-and-a-half miles. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

Inside the World of Bees

August 20, 2009

Gleanings from the Western Apicultural Society's 31st annual conference, being held in Healdsburg this week under the direction of president Eric Mussen, Extension apiculturist and member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology faculty: Honey bees can fly a distance of about two to two-and-a-half m...

View Article

HONEY BEES are nectaring outside the Western Apicultural Society conference in Healdsburg. The key subject at the conference: bee health. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

Helping the Honey Bees

August 19, 2009

The Western Apicultural Society (WAS) conference, taking place this week in the Dry Creek Inn, Healdsburg, is drawing a lot of interest. Extension Apiculturist Eric Mussen, member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, is finishing his yearlong term as president of WAS.

View Article

FIERY SKIPPER (Hylephila phyleus) nectaring catmint. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Article

Fighter Jet

August 18, 2009

Look for the fiery skipper (Hylephila phyleus) in your garden. It's likely sharing your catmint, lavender and sage with honey bees and other pollinators. It's the only one holding a "fighter-jet" position.

View Article