Environment-Biodiversity
A new pandemic is killing hundreds of millions of birds, and some species may be completely lost
by Mark Sumner 9/12/22 DAILY KOS
So far, the 2022 flu season among humans has been running well above the average. More than 25,000 patients have been hospitalized with what was thought to be the flu in just the last week, and seasonal influenza remains high across the entire nation. Part of the reason for this is that people are being hit with the H3N2 strain of Influenza A, a variant that hasn’t been around in some time, reducing the level of innate resistance. Another part is that rates of vaccination are down, following years of anti-vax propaganda and lies about the COVID-19 vaccine.
‘Pretty damn cool’: Ellie Goulding on rewilding as a cure for our planet – and our mental health
by Ellie Goulding 23/6/22 The Guardian
I just got back from a walk in Hyde park, headphones in, Max Richter playing, after a sweltering 30C day in London. I stopped halfway to take my trainers off and pad my feet on the grass. This is where I often go when I need to breathe, and not to think.
Once There Were Billions
Once-there-were-billions Smithsonian Libraries 2014 2016
Once an amazing diversity of birds—some in breathtaking abundance—inhabited the vast forests and plains of North America. But starting around 1600, species began to disappear, as humans altered habitats, over-hunted, and introduced predators.
Why indigenous folklore can save animals’ lives
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200728-the-mythical-creatures-that-protect-the-philippines BBC By Arnel Murga 28th July 2020
A belief system born of indigenous communities in the Philippines could help protect the country’s endangered species, from leopard cats to cloud rats. Part of indigenous wisdom, the “mariit” belief system (pronounced mar-ee-it) is deeply rooted in the relationship of the Filipinos with the environment. It can be traced back to the pre-colonial Filipino practice of animism, or the belief that everything possesses a soul. Mariit stretches back more than 500 years, affecting everything from where buildings are constructed, to how a driver negotiates a stretch of road. Increasingly, it is also being integrated into nature conservation.
Caught in the act: camera traps snare rarest species - in pictures
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2020/jul/28/caught-in-the-act-camera-traps-snare-rarest-species-in-pictures The Guardian July 2020
Snow leopards, tapirs, oriental storks and many others feature in WWF’s new collection. Its camera traps are wildlife friendly, as they cause little environmental disturbance, while producing permanent, verifiable records of some of the world’s rarest animals.
The technology can also give scientists vital insights into population numbers and trends at a time when poaching has reportedly increased
Continent-wide Shifts in Song Dialects of White-Throated Sparrows
https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(20)30771-5
*We study the cultural evolution of white-throated sparrow song over two decades *Doublet-ending songs spread west to east, replacing triplet-ending songs in Canada *Geolocators reveal birds from different dialect groups overwinter together *Song tutoring on wintering grounds may facilitate the cultural spread of dialects
‘Insect apocalypse’ poses risk to all life on Earth, conservationists warn
A new report suggested half of all insects may have been lost since 1970 as a result of the destruction of nature and heavy use of pesticides. The report said 40% of the 1million known species of insect are facing extinction. The analysis, written by one of the UK’s leading ecologists, has a particular focus on the UK, whose insects are the most studied in the world. It said 23 bee and wasp species have become extinct in the last century, while the number of pesticide applications has approximately doubled in the last 25 years.
Worldwide decline of the entomofauna: A review of its drivers
• Over 40% of insect species are threatened with extinction.
• Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera and dung beetles (Coleoptera) are the taxa most affected.
• Four aquatic taxa are imperiled and have already lost a large proportion of species.
• Habitat loss by conversion to intensive agriculture is the main driver of the declines.
• Agro-chemical pollutants, invasive species and climate change are additional causes.
The Bugs We Can’t Live Without
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-bugs-we-cant-live-without-11561042039 WSJ 7/17/2019 Paywall
Insect populations are in dramatic decline, and the consequences could be serious for everything from waste management to agriculture
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/7/17/1871812/-Continued-plummeting-insect-numbers-threaten-a-collapse-of-nature?utm_campaign=trending DailyKos 7/17/2019 No Paywall
"Nearly half of all insect species worldwide are in rapid decline and a third could disappear altogether, according to a study warning of dire consequences for crop pollination and natural food chains. The recent decline in bugs that fly, crawl, burrow and skitter across still water is part of a gathering "mass extinction," only the sixth in the last half-billion years. "We are witnessing the largest extinction event on Earth since the late Permian and Cretaceous periods," the authors noted.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/may/03/climate-crisis-is-about-to-put-humanity-at-risk-un-scientists-warn The Guardian Biodiversity Crisis UN report 503 2019
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/may/06/human-society-under-urgent-threat-loss-earth-natural-life-un-report The Guardian Loss of Natural World 5/06/2019
