These numbers are mind boggling. Is there a way to not look at this in an alarmist way? Like there is no way we can sustain a livable planet past the next 40 (random number I pulled out of the...
In the United States, scientists recently found the population of monarch butterflies fell by 90 percent in the last 20 years, a loss of 900 million individuals; the rusty-patched bumblebee, which once lived in 28 states, dropped by 87 percent over the same period.
The German study found that, measured simply by weight, the overall abundance of flying insects in German nature reserves had decreased by 75 percent over just 27 years. If you looked at midsummer population peaks, the drop was 82 percent.
Still, the most disquieting thing wasn’t the disappearance of certain species of insects; it was the deeper worry, shared by Riis and many others, that a whole insect world might be quietly going missing, a loss of abundance that could alter the planet in unknowable ways.
These numbers are mind boggling. Is there a way to not look at this in an alarmist way? Like there is no way we can sustain a livable planet past the next 40 (random number I pulled out of the air) years with such a decline. It sounds impossible to bounce back from.
It is really insane, isn't it? I'm not sure if there is any good news to be found here. I kind of see the bugs as an early warning system, we're pretty much fucked without them even if we get the...
It is really insane, isn't it? I'm not sure if there is any good news to be found here. I kind of see the bugs as an early warning system, we're pretty much fucked without them even if we get the overall warming under control.
Are people finally going to start accepting that we're just a hugely overpopulated species? It's simply not possible to farm, convert, & cut down the vast swathes of land we have and maintain a...
Are people finally going to start accepting that we're just a hugely overpopulated species? It's simply not possible to farm, convert, & cut down the vast swathes of land we have and maintain a sustainable ecosystem.
I remember when I was young, my neighbors had a bush that was basically a magnet for butterflies. That same bush is still alive and well, but when I visited this summer, I didn't see any...
I remember when I was young, my neighbors had a bush that was basically a magnet for butterflies. That same bush is still alive and well, but when I visited this summer, I didn't see any butterflies. I also remember seeing hundreds of fireflies and chasing after them on summer nights, but now I'm surprised if I see any at all when I go home to my mother's house. And my mother lives in a small town, not a large city where I'd expect bugs to be dead.
It's depressing to think about how our children never seeing fireflies is only the tip of the iceberg in the negative effects of climate change. And I don't see people caring enough to change their ways since typically less bugs = less swatting = a good thing. Although climate change seems abstract, saying "Florida is about to be wiped off the map" will get people to pay attention. The effects are obvious, unlike a bug extinction, which we usually consider a pest.
In other words, we're fucked, and we did it to ourselves by overusing pesticides and trying to control nature instead of understanding how nature works and working with nature.
In other words, we're fucked, and we did it to ourselves by overusing pesticides and trying to control nature instead of understanding how nature works and working with nature.
These numbers are mind boggling. Is there a way to not look at this in an alarmist way? Like there is no way we can sustain a livable planet past the next 40 (random number I pulled out of the air) years with such a decline. It sounds impossible to bounce back from.
It is really insane, isn't it? I'm not sure if there is any good news to be found here. I kind of see the bugs as an early warning system, we're pretty much fucked without them even if we get the overall warming under control.
Are people finally going to start accepting that we're just a hugely overpopulated species? It's simply not possible to farm, convert, & cut down the vast swathes of land we have and maintain a sustainable ecosystem.
I remember when I was young, my neighbors had a bush that was basically a magnet for butterflies. That same bush is still alive and well, but when I visited this summer, I didn't see any butterflies. I also remember seeing hundreds of fireflies and chasing after them on summer nights, but now I'm surprised if I see any at all when I go home to my mother's house. And my mother lives in a small town, not a large city where I'd expect bugs to be dead.
It's depressing to think about how our children never seeing fireflies is only the tip of the iceberg in the negative effects of climate change. And I don't see people caring enough to change their ways since typically less bugs = less swatting = a good thing. Although climate change seems abstract, saying "Florida is about to be wiped off the map" will get people to pay attention. The effects are obvious, unlike a bug extinction, which we usually consider a pest.
In other words, we're fucked, and we did it to ourselves by overusing pesticides and trying to control nature instead of understanding how nature works and working with nature.