Bug Squad

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.

Edith’s checkerspot (Euphydryas editha) is one of the species declining in at least two datasets quoted in the Science publication. (Photo courtesy of Walter Siegmund, Wikipedia)

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'Climate Change' May Be a Key Factor in Declining Butterfly Populations

March 5, 2021

The public tends to blame habitat loss and pesticides for the declining butterfly populations in the Western United States. But climate change, aka global warming, may be an equal, if not more, of a factor.

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A black-tailed bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus, foraging on rosemary at the Benicia Capitol State Historic Park on Feb. 23, 2021. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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What Does Science Tells Us About Bumble Bees and Honey Bees Foraging Together?

March 4, 2021

It's always a delight to see bumble bees and honey bees foraging together on flowers during the winter "sun breaks." Lately we've been seeing them sharing rosemary blossoms in Benicia and Vallejo.

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UC Davis Professor Phil Ward delivered a presentation on "All About Ants" at the UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day/Month on Feb. 20. It is now on YouTube. Photos are by Alex Wild. (Screen shot)

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Professor Phil Ward: Our Friends, the Ants

March 3, 2021

If you missed the family-friendly seminar on ants by UC Davis Professor Phil Ward on Feb. 20 during the UC Davis Biodiversity Museum Day/Month, not to worry. "All About Ants II" is posted on YouTube at https://youtu.be/d8eRNsD8dxo.

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A monarch caterpillar and a honey bee sharing tropical milkweed, Asclepias curassavica, in the summer of 2020 in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Winter Monarchs: Thankfully, They're Out There

March 2, 2021

Thankfully, they're out there. Butterfly guru Art Shapiro, UC Davis distinguished professor of evolution and ecology, spotted a female monarch butterfly at 1:35 today. As he mentioned in his email: "So, at 1:25 p.m.

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A winter monarch caterpillar munching on the remnants of milkweed on Jan. 23 in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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Perseverance Prevailed

March 1, 2021

Perseverance prevailed. The third instar monarch caterpillar we found munching on the remnants of our cut-back milkweed on Jan. 23 in Vacaville, Calif., is now an adult butterfly fluttering around the neighborhood.

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