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Where have all the insects gone?

sciencemag.org

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Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#111

Post by mvindahl »

fivestar wrote: post #20
tcfunk wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Because my entire summer of mowing can be done for 5 gallons of gasoline.

Agreed. Also, apart from mowing, a lawn can really be as easy or hard to maintain as you choose. Mine it kinda bumpy, has several patches of moss and has plenty of dandelions; I don't think "fixing" these problems will ever become enough of a priority to get it done. And of course, I'd never use chemicals of any kind for the lawn.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#112

Post by pesfandiar »

theandrewbailey wrote: post #51
sloppycee wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 field…

> I always just chalked it up to the "there were more thunderstorms when I was a kid" phenomenon That's a thing? I thought that since the house I grew up in at the time didn't have A/C and had a leaky roof just meant that thunderstorms were more important to the family. Not having A/C meant that the windows were open on hot days when thunderstorms were more likely, then had to hurry and close them when one happened.…

Merely conjecturing; if memory recall is correlated with the intensity of emotions during events, kids with their heightened sense of wonder are probably more likely to remember rare events like thunderstorms.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#113

Post by _0w8t »

YeGoblynQueenne wrote: post #105
_0w8t wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder how global this trend. Driving on a highway in southern Europe in summer made me realize why white cars were not popular there. My car was visibly covered in blood of killed insects after 500 km of scenic road.

When you say "blood", do you mean a red substance? I'm asking because insects don't have blood- they have haemolymph which doesn't contain hemoglobin and is not coloured red (it's actually bluish). If the colour of the substance on your car was red, it was probably human blood from mosquitoes. Those little flying bastards are plentiful in southern Europe and they can get real fat on human blood and make a surprisingl…

Thanks for pointing that out! The color was red, so that was mosquitoes then.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#114

Post by tinix »

ceedan wrote: post #89
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 have the same childhood memories. Mid 90's - Mid 2000s: We did a 10 hour road trip twice every summer to visit family, and always joked about how the car had a mustache because the front bumper was peppered with bugs. 2007/2011 - During college, I used to do 6-8 hour road drives up and down Florida to visit friends and we used to catch a butterfly or 2 on the window. 2011-2013 - After graduating college, I made a f…

How much of this do you think may be due to more advanced aerodynamics on modern automobiles?

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#115

Post by slashink »

perseusprime11 wrote: post #70
slashink wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products/robotic-lawn-mowers/ Got one of this for my lawn about 8 years ago and it was probably the best investment i've made for the lawn. Not only does it remove the maintenance but it also keeps the grass cut to a certain length, drying out the weeds and fertilising the grass with the smaller cut off parts. On top of that it's electric. I agree, trees would be better but in your situati…

How much is this thing?

Nowadays they start at around $1300 for 10000 square feet and goes upward in price the larger lawn you have. But with that price you also never have to attend your lawn again.

Re: Where have all the insects gone?

#116

Post by amnesiac_200 »

perseusprime11 wrote: post #7
wycke wrote: post #6

I wonder what the long-term impacts of so many homeowners applying lawncare chemicals will have. It just seems like a bad idea to spray chemicals all over the lawn, yet so many do it it. I also wonder how many are over-applying, thus making matters worse. Any thoughts on how to change people's mindsets. It seems herd mentality has taken over, even though most likely know this is not healthy or environmentally friendl…

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 get loads of flies, wasps, bees, spiders, butterflies, snails and slugs; in my back 'garden' every year. The garden is badly maintained; located in a town in highly polluted south east England; it features long grass; random weeds; stinging nettles; and brambles; this green stuff just grows and I occasionally hack it down again. There is no way a lawn mower would even work; I use a scythe.
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