Three pesticides banned in Europe for their potential to damage bee populations could pose an even greater threat than was thought, according to a new assessment by the European Food Safety Authority (Efsa). Already proscribed for seed treatments and soil applications, the Efsa analysis says that clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam also pose a ‘high risk’ […]
Tag: pesticide
Tiny Brazilian opossum could be farmers’ friend
André Mendonça pops open the spring-loaded door on the shoebox-sized trap and peeks inside. Two bulging, black eyes glare back at him. He pulls the trap off the tree limb and shakes the stunned, sopping wet creature into a clear plastic bag. “One more!” he says excitedly. The animal, a gracile mouse opossum (Gracilinanus agilis), […]
Poll: Should the mass-killing of starlings with pesticides be allowed?
Land owners surprised to discover tens of thousands of dead birds across the high desert are criticising the federal government over a mass killing of starlings in northern Nevada. The US Department of Agriculture said a pesticide was used to destroy the birds to prevent the spread of disease to dairy cows. Some area residents, […]
Our humble hedgehog is disappearing fast
They’ve been around for 15 million years; hedgehogs roamed Britain with mammoths and sabre-toothed tigers. But in a single lifetime the much-loved mammals have been driven towards extinction, their national population apparently plummeting more than thirtyfold. As Philip Larkin wrote in The Mower – a poem composed after he killed a hedgehog while cutting long […]
Storks could become poisoned by pesticides during their migration to Africa
Not all storks migrate to Africa. Many stay for the winter in the Iberian Peninsula, where landfills have become a permanent source of food. Scientists from Extremadura have analysed the presence of pollutants and pesticides (some prohibited in Spain) in the blood of nestlings from three colonies, two of which are close to landfill sites. […]
Threatened species given lifeline by new bait developed to kill feral cats
New baits targeting feral cats could aid the recovery of 53 threatened species covered under Western Australia’s largest conservation project, according to the state’s environment minister, Albert Jacob. The West Australian Department of Parks and Wildlife has spent more than 10 years developing baits to appeal to the notoriously fussy palate of cats. The end […]
Gamekeeper sentenced for poisoning birds as judge warns landowners
A judge has warned Britain’s rural aristocracy that they must take responsibility for the actions of their employees after a gamekeeper was sentenced for poisoning birds of prey. The RSPB described the killing of 11 birds of prey by Allen Lambert, former gamekeeper at the Stody estate near Holt in Norfolk, as the worst case […]
The inconvenient solution to the rhino poaching crisis
Daily, we read or hear of more rhino being poached to satisfy the seemingly insatiable demand from Asia for rhino horn. With countless articles and papers having been published on the subject – and the Internet abuzz with forums, including heated debates concerning possible solutions – current approaches seem to be failing. Evidence is in […]