Insects in Trouble
Popular urban pesticide under scrutiny | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ
A University of Minnesota scientist is examining potential side effects of the urban use of a popular family of insecticides.
Butterfly GardeningDescribes how to expand the habitat for butterflies by choosing appropriate plants for home landscapes. The 21 pages provide numerous line drawings and color photos to aid the gardener in identifying many desirable butterflies and moths and their larvae. Includes a checklist of Minnesota butterflies for butterfly watchers. For home gardeners, landscape designers, park and public garden personnel.
Information about cottonwood leaf beetle.
Full Study: The significance of the Druckrey–Küpfmüller equation for risk assessment — the toxicity of neonicotinoid insecticides to arthropods is reinforced by exposure time
Bio warfare scientists help solve mystery of dying bees - Science, News - The Independent
The cause of the mysterious decline of the honey bee in the United States – and elsewhere in the world – may have been found in the form of a
What a scientist didn't tell the NY Times on honeybee deaths - Oct. 8, 2010
A new study gains national attention, but its author fails to mention his connection to Bayer, whose pesticides are seen as a possible culprit in the mass fatalities of the bees.
Leaked document shows EPA allowed bee-toxic pesticide despite own scientists’ red flags | Grist
An internal EPA memo leaked Wednesday shows that the agency has been ignoring warnings from its own scientists about the possible pollinator-killing side effects of clothianidin, a Bayer pesticide the EPA approved for widespread use on corn and other crops.
Honey Bees & Other Pollinators | Agriculture Defense Coalition
Universität Würzburg: Dem Bienensterben auf der Spur
Schaut mal: Bienen!Naturerlebnis mit Insekten
New Evidence Linking Systemic Pesticides To Bee Die Offs
With even more scientific studies linking systemic pesticides to bee deaths, beekeepers and environmental organizations petition EPA to suspend clothianidin, a pesticide that got a free pass from registration requirements.
Insects and Insecticides (5th November 2012)
Pesticides put bumblebee colonies at risk of failure | Reuters
OSLO (Reuters) - Pesticides used in farming are also killing worker bumblebees and damaging their ability to gather food, meaning colonies that are vital for plant pollination are more likely to fail when
Pesticide makes bees forget the scent for food, new study finds | Environment | The Guardian
Neocotinoids block part of brain bees use for learning, leaving them unable to make link between floral scents and nectar
Colony Collapse Disorder and Pesticides : The New Yorker
In 2006, when beekeepers began to report that their hives were suffering from a mysterious affliction, a wide variety of theories were offered to explain what was going on. The bees were suffering from a virus, or a fungus,...
Das grosse BienensterbenUmwelt- und Verbraucherorganisation zum Schutz vor Funkstrahlung
BBKA Spring Convention - Useful Beekeeping Links
I was asked to do a presentation at the BBKA Spring Convention about Beekeeping in the 21st Centure; a look at beekeeping online and in the social media environ
What a grocery store without bees looks like | MNN - Mother Nature Network
In an effort to promote awareness about declining bee populations, a market removes all the food that relies on bees from its produce department.
Gentechnik soll Bienen retten: Den Teufel mit Monsanto austreiben - taz.de
Die Varroa-Milbe bedroht Honigbienen und vernichtet ganze Bienenvölker. Monsanto will den Schädling mit Mitteln der Gentechnik bekämpfen und erntet Kritik.
Bee-Killing Pesticides Damage Children’s Brain and Nervous System, Says European Authority
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) announced on Tuesday that pesticides linked to honey bee deaths worldwide may also damage human nervous systems —in particular the brain, and recommended that the European Commission lower the guidance levels of acceptable exposure until more research is conducted.
Harvard study backs link between neonicotinoids and bee population collapse
The suggested link between use of neonicotinoid insecticides and the collapse of honey bee colonies has been further backed by new research.
Got bees? Got vitamin A? Got malaria? Loss of pollinators increases risk of malnutrition, disease -- ScienceDailyMore than half the people in some developing countries could become newly at risk for malnutrition if crop-pollinating animals -- like bees -- continue to decline, experts say. Despite popular reports that pollinators are crucial for human nutritional health, no scientific studies have actually tested this claim -- until now.
University Communications : University of Vermont
Chronic exposure to neonicotinoids increases neuronal vulnerability... - PubMed - NCBI
FASEB J. 2015 Jan 29. pii: fj.14-267179. [Epub ahead of print]
Changes in agricultural practices since the 19th century may be a major culprit in the pollinators’ decline
The formulation makes the honey bee poison
Researchers confirm that neonicotinoid insecticides impair bee's brains
Research at the Universities of St Andrews and Dundee has confirmed that levels of neonicotinoid insecticides accepted to exist in agriculture cause both impairment of bumblebees' brain cells and subsequent poor performance by bee colonies.
Chronic exposure to neonicotinoids increases neuronal vulnerability to mitochondrial dysfunction in the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Where is the UK's pollinator biodiversity? The importance of urban areas for flower-visiting insects | Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences
BBC News - Urban habitats 'provide haven' for bees
Britain's urban areas are home to more types of wild bee than farmland, say researchers.
Global Ban on Bee-Killing Neonics Needed Now » EcoWatch
Insect Hotels
Bees Needs: pollinator advisory sheets | The Wildlife Trusts
George Pilkington is Nurturing Nature
Bumblebee nest boxes, solitary bee nest boxes, Waste Buster wormeries designed by George Pilkington of Nurturing Nature – environmental educator and consultant.
A new theory for why the bees are vanishing - Vox
Parasites, pesticides, and poor nutrition are all working together, a new paper argues — and their combined effect is worse than any one alone.
Bumblebee study called into question : Nature News & Comment
Data reanalysis casts doubt on UK government stance on neonicotinoid pesticides.
UK drew wrong conclusion from its neonicotinoids study, scientist says | Environment | The Guardian
Reanalysis of a Food and Environment Agency study may provide first conclusive evidence that neonicotinoids pesticides are a key factor in bee decline, despite it originally being used to support the opposite view
Neonicotinoids impact bumblebee colony fitness in the field; a reanalysis of the UK’s Food & Environment Research Agency 2012 experiment [PeerJ]The causes of bee declines remain hotly debated, particularly the contribution of neonicotinoid insecticides. In 2013 the UK’s Food & Environment Research Agency made public a study of the impacts of exposure of bumblebee colonies to neonicotinoids. The study concluded that there was no clear relationship between colony performance and pesticide exposure, and the study was subsequently cited by the UK government in a policy paper in support of their vote against a proposed moratorium on some uses of neonicotinoids. Here I present a simple re-analysis of this data set. It demonstrates that these data in fact do show a negative relationship between both colony growth and queen production and the levels of neonicotinoids in the food stores collected by the bees. Indeed, this is the first study describing substantial negative impacts of neonicotinoids on colony performance of any bee species with free-flying bees in a field realistic situation where pesticide exposure is provided only as part of normal farming practices. It strongly suggests that wild bumblebee colonies in farmland can be expected to be adversely affected by exposure to neonicotinoids.
New Research Links Neonicotinoid Pesticides to Monarch Butterfly Declines>
By Jonathan Latham, PhD USDA researchers have identified the neonicotinoid insecticide clothianidin as a likely contributor to monarch butterfly declines in North America. The USDA research is published in the journal Science of Nature and was published online on April 3rd (Pecenka and Lundgren 2015). Monarch butterfly populations (Danaus Plexippus) ...
How bumblebees keep warm - YouTube
Learn how bumblebees manage to fly on the coldest of days in early spring, and meet the world's largest bumblebee.
Gaza honey production stung by Israeli policies | Middle East Eye
Three offensives on the Gaza Strip, in addition to Israeli bulldozers regularly razing agricultural land, has led to a decline in beekeeping
How good is the evidence base for pollinator declines? A comment on the recent Ghazoul and Goulson Science correspondence | Jeff Ollerton's Biodiversity BlogIn a recent issue of the journal Science, Dave Goulson and colleagues presented a review entitled “Bee declines driven by combined stress from parasites, pesticides, and lack of flowers”. This stimulated Jaboury Ghazoul to submit a letter to Science criticising the Goulson et al. paper from a number of perspectives, but particularly the paucity of...
PLOS ONE: Bumblebee Pupae Contain High Levels of Aluminium
2015 - Prof Dave Goulson - Bees, Pesticides and Politics - YouTube
The second Annual Plymouth Linnean Lecture was held on Wednesday 18th March 2015 at Plymouth University by Professor Dave Goulson and was entitled "Bees, Pes...
Glyphosate harms bees' spatial learning - The Ecologist
A new study shows it's not just neonicotinoids that impair bees' ability to navigate to nectar and pollen sources, and to their nests: now the herbicide glyphosate has been found to have the same impact even at very low levels.
Environmental Science & Technology - NEONICOTINOID RESIDUES IN WILDFLOWERS, A POTENTIAL ROUTE OF CHRONIC EXPOSURE FOR BEES (ACS Publications)
Wildflowers serve as reservoir for controversial pesticides | Chemistry World
Crop pollen has levels of neonicotinoid insecticides 10 times lower than native species
Whistleblower Claims Censorship of Research into Pesticide Linked to Bee Deaths | Civil Eats
Did the USDA suppress research findings that could call into question the use of neonicotinoids, a class of pesticides links to bee deaths?
OPINION: The secret poisoning of Britain's hedgerows | Countryfile.com
Peter Melchett of the Soil Associations argues that: - hedgerows are a precious wildlife habitat and have suffered huge declines in the 20th century - a new study reveals a growing threat from neonicotinoid pesticides spreading from crops to contaminate wildflowers in hedgerows - hedgerow invertebrates are declining as a result – he questions
Are bee diseases linked to pesticides? — A brief review
Plants for bees (PDF link)
The best garden flowers for bees : Resources : Goulson Lab : School of Life Sciences : University of Sussex
57 Different Pesticides found in Poisoned Honeybees – DES Daughter Network
Honeybees are being poisoned – new test reveals how
Honeybees pick up 'astonishing' number of pesticides via non-crop plants - Scienmag
The worldwide use of neonicotinoid pesticides has caused concern on account of their involvement in the decline of bee populations, which are key pollinators in most ecosystems. Here we describe a role of non-neuronal acetylcholine (ACh) for breeding of Apis mellifera carnica and a so far unknown effect of neonicotinoids on non-target insects.
Wes Anderson-inspired luxury hotel for bees has a really good cause
The hotel is complete with a sugar water bath and a UV disco.
Impacts of neonicotinoid use on long-term population changes in wild bees in England : Nature CommunicationsNeonicotinoid as insecticide on oilseed rape can reduce bee colony density, but its effect at a large geographical scale is unclear.
Controversial insecticides linked to wild bee declines : Nature News & Comment
Evidence against neonicotinoid chemicals mounts ahead of EU review.
Many factors can negatively affect honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) health including the pervasive use of systemic neonicotinoid insecticides.
The Environmental Risks of Neonicotinoid Pesticides: a review of the evidence post-2013 (PDF)
Honey bees are highly valued for their pollination services in agricultural settings, and recent declines in managed populations have caused concern.
Australian bees dying from pesticides that are banned in the EU | Green Left Weekly
A large commercial beekeeper in Darlington Point in the Riverina, southern NSW, has been forced to pack up and move after hundreds of beehives were devastated by pesticide-drift from nearby cotton farms. It is thought the bees died due to the spraying of neonicotinoid insecticides. The neonicotinoids, also called neonics, have been used in the US for 12 years but they are now completely banned in France, partially banned in Europe and Canada is considering a ban. Pesticide giants such as Bayer, Syngenta and BASF sued Europe to drop the ban. Neonics are still available in Australia. There has been a dramatic drop in bee numbers across the Middle East, Europe and the US. The US has put the bumblebee on the endangered species list for the first time.
Is electromagnetism one of the causes of the CCD? A work plan for testing this hypothesis
Journal of Behavior is a peer-reviewed journal that aims to publish scholarly papers of highest quality and significance in the field of behavior. The journal publishes original research articles, review articles, clinical reports, case studies, commentaries, editorials, and letters to the Editor. As a part JSciMed Central® Open Access platform the articles published in the Journal of Behavior are freely accessible to the readers without any paywall, thereby supports the scientific innovation and advancement in research community. JSciMed Central® also brings multiple internationally peer reviewed member journals under one roof thereby encouraging knowledge sharing, collaboration and promotion of interdisciplinary science.
Bumblebee nests | Bumblebee Conservation Trust
Larval exposure to field-realistic concentrations of clothianidin has no effect on development rate, over-winter survival or adult metabolic rate in a solitary bee, Osmia bicornis [PeerJ]
There is widespread concern regarding the effects of agro-chemical exposure on bee health, of which neonicotinoids, systemic insecticides detected in the pollen and nectar of both crops and wildflowers, have been the most strongly debated. The majority of studies examining the effect of neonicotinoids on bees have focussed on social species, namely honey bees and bumble bees. However, most bee species are solitary, their life histories differing considerably from these social species, and thus it is possible that their susceptibility to pesticides may be quite different. Studies that have included solitary bees have produced mixed results regarding the impact of neonicotinoid exposure on survival and reproductive success. While the majority of studies have focused on the effects of adult exposure, bees are also likely to be exposed as larvae via the consumption of contaminated pollen. Here we examined the effect of exposure of Osmia bicornis larvae to a range of field-realistic concentrations (0–10 ppb) of the neonicotinoid clothianidin, observing no effect on larval development time, overwintering survival or adult weight. Flow-through respirometry was used to test for latent effects of larval exposure on adult physiological function. We observed differences between male and female bees in the propensity to engage in discontinuous gas exchange; however, no effect of larval clothianidin exposure was observed. Our results suggest that previously reported adverse effects of neonicotinoids on O. bicornis are most likely mediated by impacts on adults.
Pesticides damage survival of bee colonies, landmark study shows | Environment | The Guardian
The world’s largest ever field trial demonstrates widely used insecticides harm both honeybees and wild bees, increasing calls for a ban
Are Some Pesticides, Called Neonics, to Blame for the Bee Crisis?
Neonicotinoids, popularly called neonics, came on the scene when other pesticides no longer deterred pests but instead poisoned vertebrates.
Pesticide reduces bumblebee colony initiation and increases probability of population extinction | Nature Ecology & Evolution
Agrargift zerstört Tiergedächtnis: Ursache für Sterben der Wildbienen geklärt - n-tv.de
Lange Zeit waren die Ursachen für das weltweit verbreitete Bienensterben nicht geklärt. Neueste Untersuchungen können nun den Grund benennen. Es ist derselbe, der auch die Schmetterlingspopulationen schrumpfen lässt.
Insekten sind die artenreichste Gruppe an Organismen und machen 70 Prozent aller Tierarten in Deutschland aus. Meist ungesehen und unbekannt, leisten sie wertvolle Arbeit.
Ausgeflattert II - Der Schmetterlingsreport 2017 | GLOBAL 2000 - Die österreichische UmweltschutzorganisationMit dem Report „Ausgeflattert – Der stille Tod der österreichischen Schmetterlinge“ setzten Blühendes Österreich und GLOBAL 2000 2016 ein Ausrufezeichen zum dramatischen Zustand der heimischen Schmetterlinge. „Ausgeflattert“ war ein erster wichtiger Schritt, um unsere Schmetterlinge und ihre bedrohliche Lage in den Fokus der Österreicherinnen und Österreicher zu bringen. Dabei gehören Schmetterlinge gemeinsam mit Bienen und Hummeln zu den wichtigsten Bestäubern. Zahlreiche Pflanzen sind auf die flatternden Wesen angewiesen.
Insect Hotels: A Refuge or a Fad? | The Entomologist Lounge
If you are a gardener by hobby and a nature enthusiast by heart, chances are that you are already familiar with the concept of insect hotels (also known as bee hotels). Offering a sanctuary to beneficial insects, especially pollinators, insect hotels are considered to be the urban solution to declining population of beneficial insects in•
Do Linden trees kill bees? | Biology Letters
A worldwide survey of neonicotinoids in honey | Science
More than 75 percent decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas
Global declines in insects have sparked wide interest among scientists, politicians, and the general public. Loss of insect diversity and abundance is expected to provoke cascading effects on food webs and to jeopardize ecosystem services. Our understanding of the extent and underlying causes of this decline is based on the abundance of single species or taxonomic groups only, rather than changes in insect biomass which is more relevant for ecological functioning. Here, we used a standardized protocol to measure total insect biomass using Malaise traps, deployed over 27 years in 63 nature protection areas in Germany (96 unique location-year combinations) to infer on the status and trend of local entomofauna. Our analysis estimates a seasonal decline of 76%, and mid-summer decline of 82% in flying insect biomass over the 27 years of study. We show that this decline is apparent regardless of habitat type, while changes in weather, land use, and habitat characteristics cannot explain this overall decline. This yet unrecognized loss of insect biomass must be taken into account in evaluating declines in abundance of species depending on insects as a food source, and ecosystem functioning in the European landscape.
Living on Earth: Flying Insects Crash
The disappearance of many bees and butterflies has concerned scientists and the public for years, and now a new study from Germany confirms that the abundance of all flying insects has dropped over 75% since 1989. Dave Goulson, Professor of Biology at the University of Sussex in the UK, discusses the probable causes with host Steve Curwood, and says the problem is so serious, it could lead to an “Ecological Armageddon.”
Are neonicotinoid insecticides driving declines of widespread butterflies? [PeerJ]
There has been widespread concern that neonicotinoid pesticides may be adversely impacting wild and managed bees for some years, but recently attention has shifted to examining broader effects they may be having on biodiversity. For example in the Netherlands, declines in insectivorous birds are positively associated with levels of neonicotinoid pollution in surface water. In England, the total abundance of widespread butterfly species declined by 58% on farmed land between 2000 and 2009 despite both a doubling in conservation spending in the UK, and predictions that climate change should benefit most species. Here we build models of the UK population indices from 1985 to 2012 for 17 widespread butterfly species that commonly occur at farmland sites. Of the factors we tested, three correlated significantly with butterfly populations. Summer temperature and the index for a species the previous year are both positively associated with butterfly indices. By contrast, the number of hectares of farmland where neonicotinoid pesticides are used is negatively associated with butterfly indices. Indices for 15 of the 17 species show negative associations with neonicotinoid usage. The declines in butterflies have largely occurred in England, where neonicotinoid usage is at its highest. In Scotland, where neonicotinoid usage is comparatively low, butterfly numbers are stable. Further research is needed urgently to show whether there is a causal link between neonicotinoid usage and the decline of widespread butterflies or whether it simply represents a proxy for other environmental factors associated with intensive agriculture.
Plummeting insect numbers 'threaten collapse of nature' | Environment | The Guardian
Worldwide decline of the entomofauna: A review of its drivers - ScienceDirect
World's Largest Bee Rediscovered in Indonesia - EcoWatch
Invasion of the âfrankenbeesâ: the danger of building a better bee | Environment | The Guardian
Wild Bees Have Been Found Building Nests Entirely Out of Plastic Waste
Arthropod decline in grasslands and forests is associated with landscape-level drivers | Nature
Munich study confirms severe decline in insect populations in Germany | Science| In-depth reporting on science and technology | DW | 30.10.2019Moth biomass increases and decreases over 50 years in Britain | Nature Ecology & Evolution
Meta-analysis reveals declines in terrestrial but increases in freshwater insect abundances | Science
Strengere Regeln für Pflanzenschutzmittel in Haus- und Kleingarten - Aurelia-Stiftung
Long-term effects of neonicotinoid insecticides on ants | Communications Biology
Pesticides impair baby bee brain development | Imperial News | Imperial College London
Effects of sublethal doses of glyphosate on honeybee navigation | Journal of Experimental Biology
Field rates of Sivanto™ (flupyradifurone) and Transform® (sulfoxaflor) increase oxidative stress and induce apoptosis in honey bees (Apis mellifera L.)
The Problem with Honey Bees - Scientific American
Honeybees disrupt the structure and functionality of plant-pollinator networks | Scientific Reports
Insects and recent climate change | PNAS
Insekten mit Imageproblem: Wespen zu dissen ist ökologisch nicht korrekt
The insect apocalypse: ‘Our world will grind to a halt without them’ | Insects | The Guardian
Artensterben | Käfer und Mücken verschwinden, weil Schutzgebiete nicht schützen — der Freitag
Direct pesticide exposure of insects in nature conservation areas in Germany | Scientific Reports
Anthropogenic influences on bee foraging
Stung by drought, Morocco's bees face disaster
Negative impact of roadside mowing on arthropod fauna and its reduction with ‘arthropodâfriendly’ mowing technique - Steidle - - Journal of Applied Entomology - Wiley Online Library
Flying insect numbers have plunged by 60% since 2004, GB survey finds | Insects | The Guardian
How Non-Native Plants Are Contributing to a Global Insect Decline - Yale E360
Role of management in the long-term provision of floral resources on farmland - ScienceDirect
Giftfalle "bienenfreundliche Pflanzen" 2022 - BUND e.V.
Uni Trier: BeitragBreakpoints in butterfly decline in Central Europe over the last century - ScienceDirect
Why we love bees and hate wasps
The State of the UK's Butterflies 2022 Report | Butterfly Conservation
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