English

THE bird population of what is regarded as one of Wales’ wildlife havens has decreased dramatically, according to alarming new figures. A report by the Pembrokeshire Biodiversity Partnership shows starlings Sturnus vulgaris have decreased by 70%, yellowhammers Emberiza citrinella by 50% and skylarks Alauda arvensis by 33%. RSPB Cymru said starling numbers have decreased by 58% since 1994, and yellowhammers by 40%. Another two species giving “cause for concern” are corn buntings Miliaria calandra and turtledoves Streptopelia turtur, both of which no longer breed every year in Wales. Turtle doves and corn buntings are virtually non-existent now in Devon and Cornwall, figures published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have shown. Grahame Madge of the RSPB said: "It's a real desperate shame. We are working with farmers in the Westcountry to try and hang on to as many farmland species as possible. "The linnet Carduelis cannabina has declined by 32 per cent since 1995, and other declines in the region have included the yellowhammer, down 13 per cent, and a 24 per cent decrease in skylark numbers. "But possibly the most staggering decline, aside from the corn bunting and turtle dove, which are basically extinct in the Westcountry, is that of the cuckoo Cuculus canorus, down 73 per cent. "Most of the reductions occurred between the late-1970s and early 1990s, but numbers fell by more than 9 per cent in the five years to 2009, the statistics revealed.

We studied nesting yellowhammers Emberiza citrinella on a lowland arable farm in North Yorkshire between 2001 and 2003, to examine the effects of food abundance on breeding success and the effects of insecticide on food abundance.

Arthropod abundances around individual nests were sampled and the timing and location of insecticide applications were recorded. Nestling condition and mass on day 6 after hatching were positively correlated with the abundance of arthropods important in the diet of nestling yellowhammers. Greater mean body mass and condition corresponded with a lower incidence of brood reduction. The abundance of arthropods important in the diet of nestling yellowhammers increased between mid-May and the end of July. However, arthropod samples collected within 20 days of an insecticide application did not show this seasonal increase in abundance and were depressed at levels likely to affect yellowhammer breeding performance adversely.

The current study was conducted to evaluate the effects of imidacloprid on soil microbial diversity. The results clearly showed that imidacloprid has significant negative impact on soil bacterial diversity in highly polluted farms and soil microbial balance has been gradually upset by application of more pesticide.

In 1999, French policymakers decided to limit the use of Gaucho (imidacloprid) in the face of uncertainty surrounding the risk to honeybee health. They drew on a preponderance of indirect evidence from observations in actual crop settings by French beekeepers and followup studies by researchers affiliated with the government. Since then, ecotoxicological laboratory studies of the influence of the newer systemic insecticides on honeybees have identified adverse effects: chronic feeding of neonicotinyl insecticides to honeybees at sublethal doses comparable to levels found in pollen and nectar of treated field crops had deleterious effects on learning, memory, behavior, and longevity. Lab studies also suggest that synergistic interactions between the newer systemic insecticides and other environmental toxins and pathogens could enhance the toxicity to honey bees. U.S. EPA officials recognize that these data on the ecological effects of the newer systemic toxins is a cause for some concern but maintain that it is too inconsistent to restrict the use of these toxins. Attached is an article on the influence of Bayer Cropscience on Dutch policy makers (which appeared in the magazine "Vrij Nederland" on April 4, 2012).

Infection by Nosema ceranae, a parasite that causes Nosema disease (1), results in higher mortality among honeybees when they are exposed to low doses of insecticides. This is a recent finding by researchers at the Microorganisms: Genome and Environment Laboratory (Laboratoire Microorganismes: Génome et Environnement (LMGE, CNRS/Université Blaise Pascal Clermont-Ferrand)) and the Environmental Toxicology Laboratory (Laboratoire de Toxicologie Environnementale (LTE, INRA Avignon)).

Many farmland bird species have declined markedly in Europe in recent decades because of changes in agricultural practice. The specific causes vary and are poorly known for many species. The Little Owl, which feeds extensively on large invertebrates and is strongly associated with the agricultural landscape, has declined over most of northwestern Europe, including Denmark. We investigated the likely reasons for the population decline in Denmark by identifying patterns of local extinction (scale, 5 × 5 km2) and estimating demographic parameters affecting local survival, focusing on changes over time and their relationship to habitat characteristics.