Neonicotinoids are a type of pesticide used on a wide variety of crops in this and other countries. They can be long-lasting, effective against many insects, can be applied via seed coatings, and are less toxic to mammals than other pesticides. Those first three attributes are why they have raised many concerns among conservationists and environmentalists. Lots of insects are beneficial to us and even those that are bothersome can be important food for other creatures, especially birds. Birds eat seeds as well as bugs.
A female bobolink finds a meal in the form of a caterpillar. Photo by Arlene Koziol
Recently, the first scientific study to link the use of these pesticides to the decline of birds in this country, with particular attention to grassland birds of the Midwest was published on August 14, 2020, with grim results:
[Co-author Madhu] Khanna says numerous studies have shown neonicotinoids—nicotine-based pesticides—negatively affect wild bees, honey bees, and butterflies, but large-scale studies on the pesticide's impact on birds have been limited.
"This represents the first study at a national scale, over a seven-year time period, using data from hundreds of bird species in four different categories—grassland birds, non-grassland birds, insectivores, and non-insectivores," she says.
"We found robust evidence of the negative impact of neonicotinoids, in particular on grassland birds, and to some extent on insectivore birds after controlling for the effects of changes in land use."
Read the full story here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200814131023.htm
For several years, pollinator experts and advocates have been concerned that neonicotinoids are contributing to the declines of some of these insects with particular focus on honey bees and monarch butterflies. In Europe that alarm had included the declining population of some bird species. We face that problem here and now.
Photos above by Xerces.org. For example, in 2013 in Wilsonville, Oregon, 55 linden trees were sprayed with a neonicotinoid, which directly resulted in the die-off of an astonishing 25,000+ bumble bees. These native bees are pollination power-houses, and with many bees already facing serious threats, the severity of this outcome caused an uproar in the local and conservation community. But without a ban, these chemicals are still at large.
Before we move on to the advocacy connection, let's do an attitude check. When neonicotinoids come up, many of us in the conservation camp can climb into high dudgeon. It's pretty tempting to think of lousy chemical companies and some farmers—how can they bring themselves to sell and use such deadly poisons?!? However, in full disclosure, Madison Audubon sanctuary staff and volunteers, as well as those connected with other conservation organizations and public agencies, use a variety of poisons to restore the prairies and wetlands we love. These are almost all herbicides and we use them as carefully as possible. And they probably don't have the full range of bad effects that neonicotinoids do. But they can be dangerous to the environment and human applicators if not used with extreme caution. Just as farmers might argue that they use neonicotinoids as the most effective and efficient means of controlling some serious pests, we use herbicides as the most effective and efficient way to eliminate or control some destructive invasive plants.
Wild parsnip is an example of a nasty, extremely persistent invasive species whose reduction largely relies on use of select chemicals. Photo by Joshua Mayer
Just trying to be fair here. Nevertheless, neonicotinoids deserve full, objective scientific study to describe their short- and long-term effects on non-targeted plants, wildlife, surface- and groundwater and to recommend whether additional regulation is needed. Normally, I'd ask you to contact the EPA and call for such studies. Save your breath or fingers or brainpower. There's simply no point in asking this EPA to study or regulate neonicotinoids right now. It ain't going to happen in any meaningful, fair way. What you need to do is vote this fall. I'm not recommending either major candidate. Just vote, please, and if you have a relative, friend or neighbor who might be reluctant to vote or doesn't often vote, please try to persuade him or her to do so. On the subjects of the EPA, conservation, COVID, the economy, justice, the role of government, and on and on, we face clear choices in this election. Our country deserves that every eligible voter does so. If the turnout is huge, we can at least know that whatever direction our country takes is the will of us, the people.
Written by Topf Wells, Madison Audubon board member and advocacy committee chair
