Bug Squad

Bumble bee on bull thistle at Bodega Bay
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Occupied! A praying mantis, a female Stagmomantis limbata occupies a Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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Portraits of The Predator and the Prey

August 4th, 2020
Heads will not roll. The Hunger Games will not begin. Preying does not always work. It's Aug. 2, 2020 and a praying mantis decides to occupy a specially stunning Mexican sunflower. Specifically, it's a female Stagmomantis limbata occupying a Tithonia rotundifolia.
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A honey bee encounters a lady beetle, aka ladybug, on mustard. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
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This Is Not Our Planet. Whose Planet Is It?

August 3rd, 2020
Mention "beetles," and most folks think of that iconic English rock band from Liverpool. You know, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr? But to entomologists, "The Beatles," means "The Beetles.
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These Asian giant hornet images from the Washington State Department of Agriculture shows (from left), an example of a worker; the specimen collected July 14; an example of the queen.
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Trapping the Asian Giant Hornet

July 31st, 2020
Just when folks were beginning to think "it may be over and done" regarding Asian giant hornet sightings, it's not. The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) has just trapped its first Asian giant hornet, Vespa mandarinia, which the news media dubbed "the murder hornet.
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