By Deborah Netburn 12 November 2019 DONNER PASS, California (Los Angeles Times) – Art Shapiro stands on the edge of a Chevron gas station in the north-central Sierra, sipping a large Pepsi and scanning the landscape for butterflies. So far he’s spotted six species — a loping Western tiger swallowtail, two fluttering California tortoiseshells, a […]
By Andrew Crane-Droesch 21 October 2019 (The Washington Post) – I joined the Economic Research Service (ERS) in 2016. I wanted to use my academic training to do something in the public interest — I didn’t really expect to get involved in agriculture. Then I got absorbed in the subject: Humanity’s dependence on the environment […]
By Dan Radel 31 July 2019 (Asbury Park Press) – Blink and you’ll miss one. Collecting fireflies is a childhood memory that many of us share. Their glowing lights begin to appear in the twilight around the time school ends each year, signaling the start of summer vacation. But is the fire going out? Researchers and advocates say the insect is […]
By Hayley Dunning 30 April 2019 (Imperial College London) – Bees exposed to a neonicotinoid pesticide fly only a third of the distance that unexposed bees are able to achieve. Flight behaviour is crucial for determining how bees forage, so reduced flight performance from pesticide exposure could lead to colonies going hungry and pollination services […]
By Steve Lundeberg 2 July 2019 CORVALLIS, Oregon (Oregon State University) – The most extensive and systematic insect monitoring program ever undertaken in North America shows that butterfly abundance in Ohio declined yearly by 2%, resulting in an overall 33% drop for the 21 years of the program. Though the study was limited to one […]
By Julia Jacobo 9 July 2019 (ABC News) – Scientists are researching the potential consequences of the rapid decline of the honey bee population in the U.S. and how to mitigate its effects before it causes dire problems for crop management and production. Honey bees are essential for the pollination of flowers, fruits and vegetables, and support about $20 […]
By Daphne Rousseau 1 July 2019 (AFP) – For almost 30 years they passed as quirky eccentrics, diligently setting up their insect traps in the Rhine countryside to collect tens of millions of bugs and creepy crawlers. Now the group of German entomology enthusiasts can boast a world-class scientific treasure: evidence of what is described […]
By Coral Davenport 15 April 2019 WASHINGTON (The New York Times) – The Interior Department’s internal watchdog has opened an investigation into ethics complaints against the agency’s newly installed secretary, David Bernhardt. Mr. Bernhardt, a former lobbyist for the oil and agribusiness industries, was confirmed by the Senate last week to head the agency, which oversees […]
By Liam James 15 February 2019 (The Independent) – Months after scientists warned it is at greater risk than ever, the Great Barrier Reef is facing a new challenge: dirty water. Run-off from the recent floods in Australia is spreading from the coast with the potential to reach the fragile reef. The floodwater is thick […]
12 February 2019 (University of Sydney) – A research review into the decline of insect populations has revealed a catastrophic threat exists to 40 percent of species over the next 100 years, with butterflies, moths, dragonflies, bees, ants, and dung beetles most at risk.Author of the review, Dr Francisco Sanchez-Bayo, an honorary associate with the […]
