Plummeting insect numbers 'threaten collapse of nature'

[FAH1223]

A decade ago you could drive across the country and your car would be hit with so many dead bugs on your windshield and front bumper

Now... it doesn't happen

 

[Micky Mikey]

I can do without roaches and palmetto bugs

but you can't do without food can you...
we depend on insects to pollinate our crops and serve as a source of protein for many of the animals we eat.

also the pests you hate are actually increasing in popuoation and filling the void

 

[acri1]

A decade ago you could drive across the country and your car would be hit with so many dead bugs on your windshield and front bumper

Now... it doesn't happen

Yeah...now that you mention it I can't remember the last time I've had an issue with bugs in/on my car.

Not that I like bugs but this is some scary ish.

 

[Professor Emeritus]

A decade ago you could drive across the country and your car would be hit with so many dead bugs on your windshield and front bumper

Now... it doesn't happen

Yeah...now that you mention it I can't remember the last time I've had an issue with bugs in/on my car.

Not that I like bugs but this is some scary ish.

Someone pointed that out to me like two years ago and it was some really shocking shyt.

I remember taking a road trip to Missouri when I was a kid and you had to wash the bugs off at every stop. As a 10yo kid it was kinda cool looking at what showed up on the grill.

Last May my homie and I did a road trip covered 2000+ miles...I don't remember cleaning bugs off at all, just dust.

 

[Micky Mikey]

we humans have deluded ourselves into thinking we are some how separate from nature and that this current civilization is the pinnacle of human acheivement.
we are actually pretty barbaric in terms of the evolution of our psyche.
However, perhaps destroying our own ecosystem (from which we depend on) is the next evolutionary step. Perhaps we need a global catastrophe to reach the next level of advancement. Perhaps the loss of a few billion homo-sapiens and the billions of other earthly creatures are what's needed to radically shift our way of life and understanding of earth and reality as a whole.

 

[Wild self]

we humans have deluded ourselves into thinking we are some how separate from nature and that this current civilization is the pinnacle of human acheivement.
we are actually pretty barbaric in terms of the evolution of our psyche.
However, perhaps destroying our oen ecosystem (from which we depend on) is the next evolutionary step. Perhaps we need a global catastrophe to reach the next level of advancement. Perhaps the loss of a few billion homo-sapiens and the billions of other earthly creatures are what's needed to radically shift our way of life and understanding of earth and reality as a whole.

Better start cloning extinct animals and bugs to be released to the wild, so that the ecosystem can thrive

That's the only solution left.

 

[Professor Emeritus]

How about you blame Russia while you at it

You leaving out GMO crops.
You leaving out Fukushima radiation.
You leaving out spraying of the atmosphere.
You leaving out increased radio frequencies from more and more powerful cellphone towers.

Not saying one is the culprit or main culprit, but all you can do is blame "climate change"....stop seek help.

Climate change is an issue, but I'd actually agree it's not the main issue.

Agribusiness is probably the biggest issue - habitat destruction, giant monocultures, pesticides, and GMOs all contributing.

Other pesticide use is also an issue.

Other chemical use is also an issue.

Air and water pollution in general are also a big issue.

Development in general (more cities, wider-ranging suburbs, more natural forest loss) is a big issue.

Light pollution is probably an issue.

Globalization may be causing greater spread in insect diseases.

And climate change is an issue where it is leading to changes in weather patterns, droughts, etc.

 

[Micky Mikey]

Better start cloning extinct animals and bugs to be released to the wild, so that the ecosystem can thrive

That's the only solution left.

Yes, its possible but not very feasible. We'd have to clone species at a MASS scale and that doesn't serve as a solution to some of the core problems which are the use of pesticides, climate change and over consumption.
When shyt really hits the fan (and if we continue treading this path) I suspect that all measures that can be taken will be taken. And unfortunately it will all be too little and about 2 centuries too late.

 

[Leasy]

Earth goes through cycles ain't shyt you can do about it. Just think 12000 years ago the Earth went through a major change overnight that wiped out 80 percent of animals and insects.

 

[Wear My Dawg's Hat]

This is terrifying. We used to call the fireflies "lightning bugs" and we kept them in jars with holes to see how long they can live when I was a kid.

We'd take a medium size jelly jar, take off the label. Then, we'd use the sharp end of the can opener to poke holes in the lid.

Then we'd put the lightning bugs in the jar overnight. If they survived, we'd release them into the yard the next day.

 

[Wild self]

We'd take a medium size jelly jar, take off the label. Then, we'd use the sharp end of the can opener to poke holes in the lid.

Then we'd put the lightning bugs in the jar overnight. If they survived, we'd release them into the yard the next day.

Word. I even put one under a microscope and studied how the light even develops

But kids today can barey find any to do that with.

 

[Red Shield]

Climate change is an issue, but I'd actually agree it's not the main issue.

Agribusiness is probably the biggest issue - habitat destruction, giant monocultures, pesticides, and GMOs all contributing.

Other pesticide use is also an issue.

Other chemical use is also an issue.

Air and water pollution in general are also a big issue.

Development in general (more cities, wider-ranging suburbs, more natural forest loss) is a big issue.

Light pollution is probably an issue.

Globalization may be causing greater spread in insect diseases.

And climate change is an issue where it is leading to changes in weather patterns, droughts, etc.

I think things will get better in the long run. But things are gonna go to complete shyt before that happens..

 

[BaggerofTea]

Insects play a crucial role in human survival

Science Explorations: Classify Insects: Zoom in on True Bugs: What If... Insects Disappeared? | Scholastic.com

What If... Insects Disappeared?
A world without insects would be a very different place.


It’s hard to imagine the world without insects. Many insects are so small that we don’t always appreciate all the jobs they do for nearly all living things. But with insects making up 80 percent of all species on Earth, wiping out the insect population would have a huge effect on the web of life.

1. Animals that mainly eat insects, such as birds and frogs, would die from lack of food, and later on, the animals that eat those birds and frogs would also die of hunger. Eventually, animals at the top of the food chain, including bears, leopards, and humans, would face extinction, too.
   
2. Flowering plants, including trees and many crops that humans grow for food, including tomatoes and apples, could possibly die without insects to pollinate them.
   
3. All plants would lack the nutrients they need to grow, and could possibly die, without insects doing the work of breaking down dead animals and other plants that fertilize the soil.
   
4. Plant roots would lack the underground air they need, and could possibly die, without insects burrowing into the soil and creating air spaces in it.

 

[Hawaiian Punch]

Earth goes through cycles ain't shyt you can do about it. Just think 12000 years ago the Earth went through a major change overnight that wiped out 80 percent of animals and insects.

Link? The extinction event that wiped out the dinosaurs didn’t even kill that many species. Last time that high percentage of species died like that was the Permian Triassic extinction almost 300 million years ago. Only time there was a mass extinction of insects.

 

[Dafunkdoc_Unlimited]

A couple years ago, I noticed that there were hardly any Monarch butterflies doing their normal migration from Canada to Mexico during the early Fall.

30+ years ago, the skies were literally full of them. Used to actually catch the caterpillars as a kid for the express purpose of watching them metamorphose into butterflies.

This last Fall, I saw exactly 5.

No caterpillars whatsoever.



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