English

Pollinators have a staunch ally in Graham White. White, a small-scale hobby beekeeper in Scotland, has been an international campaigner on the dangers of neonicotinoid pesticides since 2003. Born into a family of coal miners and glassmakers in an industrial town near Liverpool, England, White developed his love of nature exploring remnant woodlands and abandoned 19th century canals. He credits his 1976 expedition, hiking the John Muir Trail from Yosemite to Mt. Whitney in California, with changing his life.

Until recently, the Bunderbos was the best place in the Netherlands to find fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra). But starting around 2008, the population in the Bunderbos began to plummet for no apparent reason. When Frank Pasmans and An Martel, veterinarians here at Ghent University, heard about the enigmatic deaths, they recalled extinctions caused by Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), a highly lethal fungus that infects more than 700 species of amphibian. Yet tests for Bd at their lab were negative.

The use of insecticides on crops can affect non-target insects, such as bees. In addition to the adult bees, larvae can be exposed to the insecticide through contaminated floral resources. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the possible effects of the exposure of A. mellifera larvae to a field concentration of thiamethoxam (0.001 ng/mL thiamethoxam) on larval and pupal survival and on the percentage of adult emergence. Additionally, its cytotoxic effects on the digestive cells of midgut, Malpighian tubules cells and Kenyon cells of the brain of newly emerged A.

There are now 46 breeding pairs left in Northern Ireland, a fall of 22% since 2010, when there were 59 pairs, and the numbers are also declining elsewhere in the UK, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) reports. The hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) population has suffered a decline of 88 pairs (13%) over the past six years with a total UK population estimated to be 545 pairs, according to the latest figures from the fifth national hen harrier survey. Known for their majestic skydancing ritual, this graceful bird is one of the most threatened birds of prey in the UK.

Some species of North American hummingbirds are in severe decline and a British Columbia research scientist says one possible cause might be the same insecticide affecting honey bees. Christine Bishop with Environment and Climate Change Canada said researchers started looking at a variety of factors that may be responsible, ranging from habitat loss to changes when plants bloom. To try and find some answers, researchers began collecting urine and feces from the birds for testing.

Experiments linking neonicotinoids and declining bee health have been criticized for not simulating realistic exposure. Here we quantified the duration and magnitude of neonicotinoid exposure in Canada’s corn-growing regions and used these data to design realistic experiments to investigate the effect of such insecticides on honey bees. Colonies near corn were naturally exposed to neonicotinoids for up to 4 months—the majority of the honey bee’s active season.

The vast reduction in insect numbers is indicative of generally declining nature everywhere, from birds to elephants, and wildflowers to frogs and toads. There are exceptions, especially with larger and more charismatic species, including otters and peregrine falcons. Generally, though, the trend is downwards. Because all nature is connected the declines in different groups are connected. Thus, fewer insects means fewer insect-eating birds, such as swallows, swifts and skylarks.

Steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) are entrenched in the economy, ecology, and culture of the Pacific Northwest. Declining numbers of steelhead in the rivers flowing through British Columbia, Washington state, and Oregon are troubling fishers and fisheries managers alike. A new study published today in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (CJFAS) shows that survival of young steelhead trout in ocean environments has also been precipitously declining.