Insecticides

Occurrence and distribution of five neonicotinoids (NEOs) in surface water and sediment were studied in the Pearl Rivers, including three trunk streams, Dongjiang, Beijiang, Xijiang River (DR, BR and XR), South China. At least one neonicotinoid was detected in surface water and sediment of the Pearl Rivers, with imidacloprid (IMI) and thiamethoxam (THM) being the frequently detected NEOs. Total amount of NEOs (∑5neonics) in surface water and sediment ranged from 24.0 to 322 ng/L, and from 0.11 to 11.6 ng/g dw, respectively.

Millions of birds have been lost from New Zealand countryside over the past 30 years. Most of them were introduced birds so have not been missed, but surely someone should have recognised that their loss indicated something had gone very wrong with farmland ecosystems. It is the decline of insects that has had the greatest impact on birds. There is no monitoring of insects in New Zealand to my knowledge.

In Michigan, half of its bumblebee species have declined by 50 percent or more, Michigan Radio reported. "Of those twelve species, about half of them have declined and the other half are stable," Thomas Wood, a post-doctoral research associate at Michigan State University, told the radio station. Of the six species that have declined, their numbers dropped by more than 50 percent, Wood added. One species, the rusty patched bumblebee (Bombus affinis), has even gone extinct in Michigan. In 2017, the U.S.

Forscher der Schweizer Universität Neuenburg haben die Federn von Spatzen (Passer domesticus) in der Nähe von Ackerflächen auf Pestizide hin untersucht und sind auf Neonicotinoide gestoßen. Forscher um Fabrice Helfenstein und Segolene Humann-Guilleminot untersuchten nun, ob Vögel, die sich von Samen oder Insekten ernähren, einer Kontamination mit Neonicotinoiden ausgesetzt sind. Von den Ergebnissen berichten die Wissenschafter im Fachblatt "Science of the Total Environment".

Today, 2,000 pesticides with 500 chemical substances are being used in Europe. However, data on how such substances affect soil quality is incomplete and fragmented, and fails to clearly reflect their overall impact on soil systems and human health. First-time research conducted in the course of two EU-funded projects, iSQAPER and RECARE, is shedding light on the state of European soils. The results are far from reassuring.

Twelve pesticides made with chemicals shown to harm bees and other pollinators are slated to be banned as part of a proposed settlement with the manufacturers, the EPA announced Dec. 12. The pesticides, marketed by Syngenta AG., Bayer AG, and Valent USA Corp., contain either thiamethoxam or clothianidin, two chemicals in the neonicotinoid class that are linked to declining bee populations.

Chemical agriculture is destroying the ecosystems that sustain all life. Pesticides are a key culprit in the decline of bees, butterflies and other pollinators — leading some scientists to warn of a “second silent spring.” , Pesticides wreak havoc on the soil by killing the organisms that are the basis of soil life. And they pollute rivers, lakes and oceans, leading to fish die-offs.

Zwei Sorten Leuchtkäfer sind in der Schweiz verbreitet: Beim Grossen Leuchtkäfer (Lampyris noctiluca) leuchten nur die flügellosen Weibchen, beim Kleinen Leuchtkäfer (Lamprohiza splendidula) glitzern auch die fliegenden Männchen. Das bezaubernde Leuchten ist allerdings nicht mehr sehr häufig zu beobachten: Auch die Leuchtkäfer sind vom allgemeinen Insektensterben betroffen. Um darauf hinzuweisen, hat Pro Natura sie zum Tier des Jahres 2019 ernannt.