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The status of the Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) will be reviewed under the Endangered Species Act, a decision which could lead to uplisting of the Threatened subspecies to Endangered, a change supported by American Bird Conservancy. “American Bird Conservancy appreciates that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is taking this action to help reverse the Northern Spotted Owl’s spiral toward extinction” said Steve Holmer, senior policy advisor for American Bird Conservancy. Long-term demography studies which make up the federal government’s monitoring program for the species show that in 2013 populations in all eight study areas were in decline and well below historic averages for both total numbers and breeding success. “In the Tyee demographic study area near Roseburg, Oregon, the population has seen a severe drop in the last five years; only 29 owl pairs were found in 2013 compared to 66 pairs ten years ago,” said Holmer. "The number of females nesting has decreased, as has the average number of offspring.” The Tyee researchers concluded that “the last three years of reproduction have been the lowest on record and resulted in the fewest number of young produced.”

An influential European scientific body said on Wednesday that a group of pesticides believed to contribute to mass deaths of honeybees is probably more damaging to ecosystems than previously thought and questioned whether the substances had a place in sustainable agriculture. The finding could have repercussions on both sides of the Atlantic for the companies that produce the chemicals, which are known as neonicotinoids because of their chemical similarity to nicotine. Global sales of the chemicals reach into the billions of dollars. Research has been directed largely at the effects of neonicotinoids on honeybees, but that focus “has distorted the debate,” according to the report released on Wednesday by the European Academies Science Advisory Council. The council is an independent body composed of representatives from the national science academies of European Union member states. The European ban is up for review this year, and the council’s report, based on the examination of more than 100 peer-reviewed papers that were published since the food safety agency’s finding, was prepared to provide officials with recommendations on how to proceed.

The critically endangered swift parrot (Lathamus discolor) could become extinct within less than two decades, says a new study published online in the journal Biological Conservation. The bird breeds only in Tasmania, and migrates to mainland Australia in autumn, undertaking the longest migration of any parrot species in the world. The breeding range is always within eight km of the coast, largely restricted to an area of less than 500 sq. km. During the breeding season, nectar from the flowers of Tasmanian blue gum is the principal food source. During the non-breeding period, swift parrots feed extensively on nectar and lerp and other items from eucalypt foliage. The bird also eats psyllid insects and lerps, seeds and fruit. The new five-year study discovered that swift parrots move between different areas of Tasmania each year to breed, depending on where food is available. “Swift parrots are in far worse trouble than anybody previously thought. Everyone, including foresters, environmentalists and members of the public will be severely affected if they go extinct,” said Prof Robert Heinsohn of the Australian National University, who is the lead author on the study. Prof Heinsohn and co-authors predicted that the population of the swift parrots will halve every four years, with a possible decline of 94.7 per cent over 16 years.

New research has identified the neonicotinoid insecticide clothianidin as a likely contributor to monarch butterfly declines in North America. The research, published on April 3rd 2015, identifies concentrations of clothianidin as low as 1 part per billion as harmful to monarch butterfly caterpillars. These concentrations of clothianidin were found in the populations of milkweeds sampled by the researchers. Previously, no research had been done on neonicotinoids and butterflies and therefore this is the first report of neonicotinoids affecting monarchs or any other butterflies. The research was conducted in Brookings, South Dakota and is published in the journal Science and Nature (Springer).

Neonicotinoids are a new group of insecticides, and little is known about their toxicity to nontarget freshwater organisms an potential effects on freshwater ecosystems. The aim of this study is to establish the acute toxicity and histopathological effects of thiamethoxam-based pesticide on the gill tissue of Gammarus kischineffensis. In this study G. kischineffensis samples were exposed to 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 and 100 mg/l of commercial grade thiamethoxam for 96 h. The 24, 48, 72 and 96 h LC50 values were determined as 75.619, 23.505, 8.048 and 3.751 mg/l respectively. In histopathological study the individuals were exposed to 0.004, 0.04 and 0.4 mg/l thiamethoxam concentrations for 14 days. The results showed that the most common changes at all doses of thiamethoxam were vacuolization and hemostatic infiltration in the gill tissue of G. kischineffensis.

It’s a sure sign of spring when the chorus of songbirds once again returns to our region. Recent mornings, I’ve awoken to the sounds of robins chirping, the tune of a white-throated sparrow and the gentle cooing of morning doves. The silence of the winter has broken. Imagine for moment if that winter silence continued into spring and summer. Unfortunately, it’s a scenario that could very well unfold as we’ve seen sharp declines in the number of songbirds over the past few decades. Birdsong that has graced the Earth for millions of years, and for all of human history, could soon be stilled in a human-made perfect-storm of negligence and unintended consequences. A film that was shown on CBC-TV last week, Song Bird SOS, shines light on the ever-growing decline of songbirds, and outlines some of the potential causes. You can view the documentary at cbc.ca.