Bug Blog
A Miss Is as Good as a Smile
Our buddy, the resident praying mantis, appears to be in perfect form. Crouched beneath the Mexican sunflower (Tithonia), he glistens in the early morning light, as honey bees, long-horned bees,...
Praying mantis hides beneath the petals of a Mexican sunflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Are you looking at me? (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A leap and a near miss as a startled fiery skipper spins away. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Gulf Fritillary moves out of the way of the praying matnis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Artichoke in Bloom: Bee Food
Bee food. That's what the globe artichoke is. Bee food. Many of us let our artichokes flower, not because we don't like the vegetable, but because we like bees better. Whether you see bees flying...
Honey bees flying in formation toward an artichoke in bloom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Carrying heavy loads of pollen, bees look for more. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A hot spot! Honey bees engage in a little pushing and shoving. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Luck of a Lady in White
There's something about the cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae) that makes folks foam at the mouth. That's because butterfly expert Arthur Shapiro, distinguished professor of evolution and...
Cabbage white butterfly in mid-flight. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Cabbage white nectaring on catmint. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The look of a lady. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Keeping Bees
So you want to keep bees in your backyard... When do you start? What should you do? Newly retired Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology,...
A drone (male bee) emerging. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
This frame is buzzing with bees. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Strippers
We have strippers. Not anything to do with that thriving business known as "The Strip Club" in Las Vegas. The strippers we have are Gulf Fritillary caterpillars, which can skeletonize their host...
Two Gulf Fritillary caterpillars meet on a stem after having munched all the leaves. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A trio of hungry Gulf Frit caterpillars. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Gulf Frit catepillar does an end run. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Two Gulf Fritillaries ready to mate. Note the decimated leaves around them. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)