There’s been a lot of buzz about colony collapse disorder, a phenomenon causing bees to die off around the world, and Australian scientists are trying a new approach to studying the phenomenon: They’re attaching tiny sensors to bees. More than 5,000 honeybees are being equipped with 2.5mm x 2.5mm sensors that relay data to recorders […]
Tag: pesticides
Either change the system or risk another “Silent Spring”
For years, I’ve been inspired by Rachel Carson and motivated to follow in her footsteps by highlighting and addressing the health effects of chemical exposures. But I didn’t think that I would ever be discussing issues that so closely mirror her own life’s work. More than fifty years have passed since her iconic Silent Spring, […]
Battle to save barn owl after freak weather kills thousands
Ornithologists say 2013 will be viewed as the worst year ever recorded for one of Britain’s favourite farmland birds. They fear that there are now fewer than 1,000 breeding pairs of barn owls in England, following four years of extreme weather that have resulted in the population of the protected bird declining by more than […]
Wind Turbines and Birds: Incompatible?
One reason alternative energy as a home power source (and beyond) is so popular is that it’s supposed to be better for the environment. It’s nonpolluting, doesn’t involve harmful extraction and refining techniques, and it’s highly scalable. But what if it had unintended consequences? That’s long been a concern with wind energy, an energy source […]
6 Reasons You Should Be Drinking “Bird-Friendly” Coffee
Environmentally conscious coffee drinkers already know that the brew they choose matters. They comb supermarket shelves looking for labels like “USDA Organic,” “Rainforest Alliance Certified” and “Fair Trade Certified.” Did you know, however, that there’s one more label you might want to be sure your morning cup of joe carries? Check to see whether your […]
UK’s wild bird population continues to decline
The number of wild birds in the UK is still falling, despite efforts to protect them by changing farming practices. Conservationists have urged the environment secretary, Owen Paterson, to use the money newly available from the EU’s common agricultural policy to step up protection measures. Since 2003, there has been a 13% decline in the […]
Buried in every whale’s earwax resides a record of their lifetime exposure to pollutants
In addition to the amazing revelation that whales have earwax (!!), we learn that a team of researchers in the United States just published a paper detailing a new method that they developed for measuring a whale’s lifetime exposure to a wide variety of chemicals — by studying their earwax. In this study, the team […]
POLL: Should “neonicotinoid” pesticides be banned?
MPs have criticised the British government for refusing to accept the scientific evidence for a ban on pesticides linked to bee declines. Three neonicotinoid pesticides cannot be used on crops attractive to bees from December, after a decision by the European Union to introduce a moratorium on them amid concerns that they were damaging pollinating […]