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Where have all the insects gone?

sciencemag.org

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Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#31

Post by ashark »

VA3FXP wrote: post #18
Daishiman wrote: post #13

So when will people stop minimizing that, literally, the planet is dying?

When will people stop with this hyperbole? The planet; as-in this rocky, water-world orbiting Sol, will exist for BILLIONS of years. The _life_ on this planet AS WE KNOW IT is dying, along with ourselves. That is a huge difference and one that needs to be repeated with as much clarity as possible. Will homo-sapiens still exist in 10,000 years? maybe. 100,000 years? doubtful. 1,000,000 years? nope. Will single-celled…

> The planet; as-in this rocky, water-world orbiting Sol, will exist for BILLIONS of years

Well, to nitpick a bit, not billions, for the "water-world" part. A few hundred million. It'll likely be quite parched by the 1 billion mark. Large, complex life forms are expected to have a Really Bad Time starting in the 500-600 million year range and shortly (geologically speaking) be gone entirely, assuming no acute planet-scale disasters before then.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_far_future

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#32

Post by AlexandrB »

jostmey wrote: post #28
fivestar wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it has much to do with homeowners and lawn care. If anything, it has to do with the thousands of square miles of cropland that gets sprayed for insects each year. Then again, you get outside any of the cities and the windshield gets bug splattered as always. Trillions upon trillions of insects versus humanity? I'd bet on the insects.

This belief that nature has control over the planet is sadly mistaken. If humanity wanted to, it could nuke the planet eliminating all insect life. Humanity has invented things far beyond the reach of nature and far beyond what nature can cope with.

I think even with nuclear weapons we'd have a hard time eliminating ALL the microfauna out there. Of course the recovery time would be measured in hundreds of millions of years at that point.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#33

Post by kefka »

coldpie wrote: post #12
jostmey wrote: post #8

"The mass of insects collected by monitoring traps in the Orbroicher Bruch nature reserve in northwest Germany dropped by 78% in 24 years". That number is scary. If that number is even close to the same across the world, the planet is in more trouble than anyone realizes

Just another one of those darn Chinese hoaxes.

People really shouldn't forget this is what we're up against. For those that don't know, this is what Trump said (0).

Given the rest of the Republican's resistance in stemming pollution, CO2, NOx's, plastics, and other nasties, we have to do this ourselves. I look at the boom of comments on Tesla's Powerwall and solar roof as a great way to help. We also have to do what we can in our communities and state to turn this tide..

We have to make this a National Security issue, and a State Security issue. Who cares about wildlife? But most certainly the farmers care about weather. And everyone affected cares about oil spills from pipelines. It's time to re-frame this, and challenge this on the same plank of "Think of the Children", primarily because that approach does seem to work.

(0) https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/26589529219124838...

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#36

Post by jackhack »

AlexandrB wrote: post #24
fivestar wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it has much to do with homeowners and lawn care. If anything, it has to do with the thousands of square miles of cropland that gets sprayed for insects each year. Then again, you get outside any of the cities and the windshield gets bug splattered as always. Trillions upon trillions of insects versus humanity? I'd bet on the insects.

> Trillions upon trillions of insects versus humanity? I'd bet on the insects. Yup, we'll just be left with the insects that can adapt quickly - cockroaches, aphids, ants - and not the insects we need/want - bees, butterflies, etc.

And if the bees continue their die-off, they'll take a majority of the mammals and insects with them, because as much as 80% of plants are pollinated by these creatures. Goodbye food chain. As if that's not enough, imagine global warming if even a 50% decline in CO2 converting plantlife were to happen.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#37

Post by rojobuffalo »

jostmey wrote: post #8

"The mass of insects collected by monitoring traps in the Orbroicher Bruch nature reserve in northwest Germany dropped by 78% in 24 years". That number is scary. If that number is even close to the same across the world, the planet is in more trouble than anyone realizes

That is a very troubling signal. But I wonder if over 24 years, some insects have developed trap avoidance.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#38

Post by sloppycee »

ashark wrote: post #9

Interesting. So maybe it wasn't just my imagination. I remember butterflies being everywhere in Spring in this area when I was a kid. Fields and air full of 'em for weeks. Monarchs especially, but all kinds. I haven't seen that kind of thing even once in probably a decade, at least. And the windshield thing. I hadn't really thought about it, but I remember my parents having to scrape the windshield just about every g…

I always just chalked it up to the "there were more thunderstorms when I was a kid" phenomenon (that a large number of people will remember there being more thunderstorms when they were children, despite studies suggesting the number of thunderstorms has remained constant).

It's not really surprising to me though, at least in my neighborhood in Toronto there has been massive urbanization; there are no more wild fields. Parks and even hydro fields (land under power lines) are being mowed bi-weekly, destroying any chance of native plant biodiversity. I haven't seen a mosquito in literally years. But to be fair once you leave the city, not much has changed; insects are still plentiful.

I'd be wary to draw any conclusions from this study, since the areas the researchers set up their monitoring stations may have experienced a similar level of urbanization.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#39

Post by jackhack »

tcfunk wrote: post #17
perseusprime11 wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lawns, in general, are not environment-friendly because of the need to use fuel to cut it and for spraying chemicals to keep the weeds and mosquitoes out. I lost the battle with my HOA to completely take the lawn out and instead just plant some useful trees. People don't realize how much money they spend on a 30 year basis to keep the lawns healthy.

I don't understand why more people don't use push reel lawnmowers. I've used one ever since I stopped living in apartments, and they are not that difficult to use. They are lighter-weight than their gas-powered cousins, and you don't have to fill it up with gas every damn time you mow. Also it doesn't make 9000dB of noise.

same here. Switched to a modern reel mower* and my poor thin lawn has benefited. it cuts like scissors, not like an axe, and it's both small and nearly silent so mowing the lawn isn't as stressful as before, what with fumes and noise. Not saying I love mowing the lawn (it's still work, after all), but it's a very different more pleasant experience compared to a gas mower, and just as quick.

*http://www2.fiskars.com/Products/Gardening-and-Yard-Care/Ree...

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#40

Post by hasbot »

tcfunk wrote: post #17
perseusprime11 wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lawns, in general, are not environment-friendly because of the need to use fuel to cut it and for spraying chemicals to keep the weeds and mosquitoes out. I lost the battle with my HOA to completely take the lawn out and instead just plant some useful trees. People don't realize how much money they spend on a 30 year basis to keep the lawns healthy.

I don't understand why more people don't use push reel lawnmowers. I've used one ever since I stopped living in apartments, and they are not that difficult to use. They are lighter-weight than their gas-powered cousins, and you don't have to fill it up with gas every damn time you mow. Also it doesn't make 9000dB of noise.

Push reel lawnmowers perform poorly unless the grass is completely dry. If the grass is damp, the mower doesn't get enough traction and slides. So, here in the PNW, I switched to a corded electric mower and now I'm not so restricted on when I can mow.
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