General

Der aktuelle Zustand der Tier- und Pflanzenarten in Deutschland ist alarmierend. Das geht aus dem ersten umfassenden Artenschutz-Report 2015 hervor, den das Bundesamts für Naturschutz (BfN) jetzt vorgestellt hat. Es sei allerhöchste Zeit zu handeln. Besonders dramatisch ist die Situation bei den wirbellosen Tieren, zu denen Insekten gehören: Knapp 46 Prozent der untersuchten Arten und Unterarten sind bedroht, extrem selten oder ausgestorben. Mit Sorge beobachten Experten dabei auch die negative Entwicklung aller 600 Wildbienenarten in Deutschland.

Neonicotinoids are the most widely used insecticides in the world. They've been linked to the decline of honeybees. But scientists now say they also harm many terrestrial, aquatic, and marine invertebrates. They damage sea urchin DNA, suppress the immune systems of crabs, and affect the tunneling and reproductive behavior of earthworms. They kill off the insects that many birds, amphibians, and reptiles rely on for food.

Pestizide rücken immer stärker ins Licht in der Diskussion um den Rückgang der Biologischen Vielfalt. In der Landwirtschaft großflächig Verwendung findende Pestizide wirken nicht nur auf die Zielorganismen, sondern direkt oder indirekt auf teils hochgradig gefährdete Arten unter europäischem Schutz. So finden vor allem die Auswirkungen von Neonikotinoiden auf Bienen aktuell starke Beachtung. Neue Veröffentlichungen weisen nun auf den Einfluss von Neonikotinoiden auf Vögel und Säuger hin. Dies kann durch eine direkte Wirkung geschehen, indem z.B.

Von 1700 untersuchten Arten an Fischen, wirbellosen Tieren und Großalgen in den deutschen Nord- und Ostseegewässern sind 30 Prozent gefährdet. Dieses Resümee zieht das Bundesamt für Naturschutz (BfN), das in Bonn die Rote Liste der Meeresorganismen vorlegte. Damit sei die Situation in Nord- und Ostsee kaum besser als im Binnenland. Auf der neuen Roten Liste stehen auch Knorpelfische wie Dornhai und Glattrochen. Ihre Lage ist laut BfN kritisch und hat sich weiter verschärft. Auch bei Aal, Schellfisch und Sternrochen hat sich die Gefährdungssituation im Vergleich zur vorangegangenen Roten Liste deutlich verschlechtert. Zudem würden die am Meeresgrund vorkommenden Organismen wie Schwämme und Muscheln und die Lebensgemeinschaften der Sandkorallenriffe beeinträchtigt sein. Von den bei früheren Analysen untersuchten 9000 Arten an Land- und Süßwasserorganismen stehen sogar 45 Prozent auf der Roten Liste. "Damit scheint die Situation in den Meeren mit 30 Prozent Rote-Listen-Arten deutlich besser zu sein, doch der Eindruck täuscht", zitiert das BfN seine Präsidentin Beate Jessel.

Allein in Deutschland gibt es nach Angaben des Bundesamts für Naturschutz (BfN) mindestens 48.000 Tierarten. "Bei etwa 30 Prozent davon ist der Bestand bedroht, sechs Prozent sind bereits ausgestorben oder verschollen", sagt Diana Pretzell, Leiterin Naturschutz Deutschland beim WWF. Neben großen Vertretern wie Wolf, Luchs, Seeadler oder Uhu stehen auch viele kleine Nager wie etwa Feldhamster, Vögel wie Kiebitz, Rotkopfwürger und Goldregenpfeifer sowie viele Fische, unter anderem Chiemsee-Renke und Ammersee-Kilch auf der sogenannten Roten Liste. Dabei handelt es sich um ein wissenschaftliches Gutachten, das in vielen Ländern in regelmäßigen Abständen verfasst wird, um "das aktuelle Ausmaß der Gefährdung der biologischen Vielfalt zu dokumentieren", so das BfN, das die Roten Listen für Deutschland alle zehn Jahre aktualisiert. Weltweit stehen 22.413 Tiere und Pflanzen auf Roten Listen, knapp ein Drittel aller bekannten Arten.

Freshwater fish are the most endangered group of animals on the planet, with more than a third threatened with extinction, according to a report being compiled by British scientists. Among those at the greatest risk of dying out are several species from UK rivers and lakes including the European eel, Shetland charr and many little known fish that have become isolated in remote waterways in Wales and Scotland. Others critically endangered include types of sturgeon, which provide some of the world's most expensive caviar, and giant river dwellers such as the Mekong giant catfish and freshwater stingray, which can grow as long as 15 feet. The precarious status of the species has been revealed in interim results from the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List assessment of freshwater fish. Dr William Darwall, manager of the freshwater unit at the IUCN in Cambridge, said: "There are still some big gaps in our knowledge, but of the 5,685 species that have been assessed, 36 per cent of them are threatened." Compared to mammals, where 21 per cent are threatened, and birds, where 12 per cent are threatened, it is clear that fresh water ecosystems are among the most threatened in the world.

Attached is the third compilation of imperiled (i.e., endangered, threatened, vulnerable) plus extinct freshwater and diadromous fishes of North America prepared by the American Fisheries Society’s Endangered Species Committee. Since the last revision in 1989, imperilment of inland fishes has increased substantially. This list includes 700 extant taxa representing 133 genera and 36 families, a 92% increase over the 364 listed in 1989. The increase reflects the addition of distinct populations, previously non-imperiled fishes, and recently described or discovered taxa. Approximately 39% of described fish species of the continent are imperiled. There are 230 vulnerable, 190 threatened, and 280 endangered extant taxa, and 61 taxa presumed extinct or extirpated from nature. Of those that were imperiled in 1989, most (89%) are the same or worse in conservation status; only 6% have improved in status, and 5% were delisted for various reasons.

A fisheries expert is warning two species unique to south-west Western Australia could face extinction. The populations of the state's only two species of aestivating fish, the salamanderfish (Lepidogalaxias salamandroides) and black stripe minnow (Galaxiella nigrostriata), which burrow into the ground and become dormant over summer, have been dramatically reduced. The ability to aestivate is similar to hibernation. Murdoch University researcher Garry Ogston said the salamanderfish was the only one of its type in the country. "In terms of the ability to aestivate, they're the only two species that do that in all of Western Australia," he said. "Some other fish species do it around the world but it's not a very typical trait, it's quite a rare trait. The salamander fish itself is actually the only member of its family, lepidogalaxias, so there are no other members related to it in that family out of any other fish anywhere in the world. He said if no action was taken, both species, which were most common around Northcliffe, were likely to disappear. "They've had quite a large range reduction, they were lost from a lot of their sites which were previously historical presence records," he said. "It was in the order of around 80 per cent for salamanderfish and just over 50 per cent for black stripe minnows, which was quite alarming. Many of the wetlands home to salamanderfish and black stripe minnow are in conservation reserves, however, others border farmlands, so working with landowners regarding fertiliser run-off, and restricting access for livestock would also be key in helping protect these pools."

Like many other area farmers, the Bredeson family in Harvey Township, between Grove City and Litchfield, buys corn and soybeans seeds treated with pesticides. Pesticides are designed to improve crop yields, but they have side effects, and the family has been learning more about these effects from an expert — Mark and Julie Bredeson’s own son, Michael. “He’s kind of on the cutting edge of finding that these pesticides that farmers have been using for many years have become a detrimental thing to not only agriculture but mother nature,” Julie said about Michael’s work. Michael, a 2008 Litchfield High School graduate, is pursuing his Ph.D. at South Dakota State University, where he studies the effects of pesticides on organisms, particularly linked to sunflowers, a common cash crop in South Dakota. In commentary in the Independent Review (see below), Michael writes about pesticides’ effects and the long-term implications for birds, reptiles, mammals, fish and plants. Julie and Michael said they’ve both noticed a reduction in wildlife at and near the family’s Meeker County farm over the years. As he grew older, Michael noticed a decline in good fishing holes, which he attributes to runoff from crop fields. “My life revolved around fishing on all the little lakes. A few of my great fishing spots died off, and that kind of irritated me, of course,” he said. Julie said she’s also witnessed a decline in wildlife since she was a child. “The landscape as far as our wildlife, butterflies and bees, has dramatically changed,” she said. “It’s something we need to think about.”