#Pesticides significantly reduce biodiversity in aquatic environmentsthe pesticides many of which are used currently in Europe and Australia are responsible for reducing the regional diversity of invertebrates in streams and rivers by up to 42 percent researchers report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
from the Institute for Environmental sciences Landau analysed the impact of pesticides such as insecticides and fungicides on the regional biodiversity of invertebrates in flowing waters using data from Germany France and Victoria in Australia.
The authors of the now-published study state that this is the first ever study which has investigated the effects of pesticides on regional biodiversity.
Pesticides for example those used in agriculture are among the most-investigated and regulated groups of pollutants.
However until now it was known not whether or to which extent and at what concentrations their use causes a reduction in biodiversity in aquatic environments.
The researchers also discovered that the overall decrease in biodiversity is primarily due to the disappearance of several groups of species that are especially susceptible to pesticides.
Protection concepts fall short of requirementsone worrying result from the study is that the impact of pesticides on these tiny creatures is already catastrophic at concentrations
The authors point out that the use of pesticides is an important driver for biodiversity loss
To date the approval of pesticides has primarily been based on experimental work carried out in laboratories and artificial ecosystems.
Pesticides will always have an impact on ecosystems no matter how rigid protection concepts are but realistic considerations regarding the level of protection required for the various ecosystems can only be made
The threat to biodiversity from pesticides has obviously been underestimated in the past. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Helmholtz Centre For Environmental Research-UFZ.
Herbicides and repeated cutting and bagging of the stems are prescribed the approaches. Invasive plants are likely to keep most of us busy for a long time Snetselaar says
Meanwhile farmers looking to avoid herbicides often have to combat weeds with tillage which causes erosion.
But no-till requires herbicides to control weeds and even after adoption of the practice by many farmers harmful algal blooms were still occurring in surface waters.
The idea with the reduced-input rotation was to have a conservation practice that worked for farmers who do not want to use herbicides
While herbicides were used in the experiment they aren't necessary because the light tilling and in-row cultivation that was done kept weeds under control.
but they require herbicide use. Reduced-input rotations don't require herbicides but they led to higher levels of soil loss.
The authors suggest further work looking at other reduced-input rotations perhaps some that use less tillage to tease out even more management options.
The study of 50 pregnant women found detectable levels of organochlorines in all of the women participating in the study--including DDT PCBS
and other pesticides that have been banned from use for more than 30 years. The study is available online in advance of publication in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.
The blood samples were tested for levels of 11 pesticides and 36 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) compounds. According to the findings all participants had detectable concentrations of at least one-quarter of the analyzed chemicals
higher concentrations of 7 of 10 organochlorine compounds were associated positively with one of more measures of more frequent and more vigorous fetal motor activity.
Fetal heart rate and motor activity associations with maternal organochlorine levels: results of an exploratory study was written by Janet A. Dipietro Meghan F. Davis Kathleen A. Costigan and Dana Boyd Barr.
We've also started exchanging ideas and information with scientists facing related challenges such as herbicide resistance in weeds and resistance to drugs in bacteria HIV and cancer.
and pesticides generally hosted more wild pollinators than conventionally farmed land. Jeroen Scheper of Alterra Research Institute and colleagues demonstrated this by analysing the results of 71 studies that had looked at the effects of implementing agri-environment schemes in various European countries.'
Bug and weed killers, solvents may increase risk of Parkinsons diseasea large analysis of more than 100 studies from around the world shows that exposure to pesticides
or bug and weed killers and solvents is associated likely with a higher risk of developing Parkinson's disease.
or weed killers and solvents increased the risk of developing Parkinson's disease by 33 to 80 percent.
In controlled studies exposure to the weed killer paraquat or the fungicides maneb and mancozeb was associated with two times the risk of developing the disease.
#Research aims for insecticide that targets malaria mosquitoesin malaria-ridden parts of Africa mosquito netting protects people from being infected
now a University of Florida entomologist wants to improve the netting by coating it with insecticide toxic only to mosquitoes.
The insecticide would work by interfering with an enzyme found in the nervous systems of mosquitoes and many other organisms called acetylcholinesterase.
Existing insecticides target the enzyme but affect a broad range of species said entomologist Jeff Bloomquist a professor in UF's Emerging Pathogens Institute and its Institute of food and agricultural sciences.
The team recently published a study in the journal Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology comparing eight experimental compounds with commercially available insecticides that target the enzyme.
Though they were less toxic to mosquitoes than commercial products the experimental compounds were far more selective indicating researchers are on the right track he said.
#Insecticides lead to starvation of aquatic organismsneonicotinoid insecticides have adverse effects not only on bees but also on freshwater invertebrates.
In Switzerland the Federal office for Agriculture (FOAG) has followed suit suspending the authorizations of three insecticides used on oilseed rape and maize fields.
Problems seen with constant exposurean Eawag study published today in the journal PLOS ONE (Public library of Science) now shows that at least one of the insecticides in this class also has toxic effects on freshwater invertebrates.
when rain falls on farmland during or shortly after the application of insecticides; these soluble but persistent substances can then enter surface waters via runoff.
when orchardists sprayed pesticides to control codling moths. Since the phase out of organophosphate insecticides though the woolly apple aphid has been making a comeback in central Washington and elsewhere.
The researchers state that the use of sweet alyssum for biological control can be integrated easily with standard orchard-management practices
and should be especially appealing to organic growers who have fewer insecticide options. The article Flowers promote aphid suppression in apple orchards was published in the July 2013 edition of Biological Controlstory Source:
when orchardists sprayed pesticides to control codling moths. Since the phase out of organophosphate insecticides though the woolly apple aphid has been making a comeback in central Washington and elsewhere.
The researchers state that the use of sweet alyssum for biological control can be integrated easily with standard orchard-management practices
and should be especially appealing to organic growers who have fewer insecticide options. The article Flowers promote aphid suppression in apple orchards was published in the July 2013 edition of Biological Controlstory Source:
ban more pesticides? Neonicotinoids are under intense scrutiny. But a ban of a broad variety of pesticides may be required to protect bees humans and the environment.
The European commission on 29th april 2013 slapped a two-year ban on insecticides suspected of killing off bee colonies.
This follows the European Food safety Authority finding that they pose a high acute risk to honey bees.
Pesticides not adequately testedconnolly exposed bee brains to these pesticides and organo-based pesticides andreported that the nerves spun into hyperactivity
A combination of these two pesticides types had a stronger impact suggesting the combined soup of pesticides could be causing more serious harm.
The thing that concerns me is that this throws a question mark over several hundred pesticides all tested by inadequate safety screens says Connolly.
He suggests that we should be tracking pesticides use in the environment just like we monitor drug use in patients.
and given that we don't know what pesticides are used in what combinations and when we don't know
if these pesticides may be contributing to some or even all these unknown diseases Connolly warns.
More research neededconnolly argues that we need to carry out research to find out which pesticides are the least harmful.
because it is inconvenient to find pesticides are dangerous. Dave Goulson professor of biological science at the University of Sterling UK agrees:
there haven't been nearly enough studies of all pesticides or interactions between them. He recently published a studyshowing neonicotinoids hit bumblebee colony growth and queen production.
Julian Little spokesperson for Bayer Cropscience based in Norwich UK says the evidence against these pesticides has all been based lab essentially taking a social insect
and force-feeding it insecticide. It says the results cannot be replicated in the environment. But he also agrees more monitoring of pollinators is needed.
Avoidance of pesticide usea possible solution to preserve bee populations further would be to restore the principle of avoidance of pesticide use.
Whereas integrated pest management sought to use as few pesticides as possible the neonicotinoids are a preventive strike.
It is the same with these pesticides. However opponents believe that the neonicotinoids ban is unlikely to decrease pesticide use.
Quite the opposite. Little warns that farmers may now have to resort to spraying insecticides up to four times a year
now that they cannot coat seeds in neonicotinoids. But other experts do not agree. There are several alternatives to using neonicotinoids and other pesticides according to Simon Potts professor of biodiversity and ecosystem services at Reading University UK.
This is a great opportunity for farmers to adopt these practices to protect bees and other pollinators.
#Amphibians living close to farm fields are more resistant to common insecticidesamphibian populations living close to agricultural fields have become more resistant to a common insecticide
and are actually resistant to multiple common insecticides according to two recent studies conducted at the University of Pittsburgh.
Amphibian populations living close to agricultural fields have become more resistant to a common insecticide and are actually resistant to multiple common insecticides.
In a study published today in Evolutionary Applications the Pitt researchers demonstrate for the first time that tadpoles from populations close to farm fields are more resistant to chlorpyrifos--one of the most commonly applied insecticides in the world often sold as Dursban or Lorsban.
In addition a related study published in February shows that tadpoles resistant to chlorpyrifos are also resistant to other insecticides.
While we've made a lot of progress in understanding the ecological consequences to animals that are exposed unintentionally to insecticides the evolutionary consequences are understood poorly said study principal investigator Rick Relyea Pitt professor of biological sciences and director of the University's Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology.
Our study is the first to explore how amphibian populations might evolve to be resistant to insecticides
when they live in places that have been sprayed for many years. The Pitt researchers used newly hatched tadpoles collected from nine populations of wood frogs living at different distances from agricultural fields.
which is a common herbicide used against weeds. Relyea and his Pitt collaborators exposed the tadpoles from each of the nine populations to environments containing either no pesticides chlorpyrifos or Roundup.
After 48 hours they measured how well the populations survived. Wood frogs living close to agricultural land were more likely to have been exposed to pesticides for many generations compared to those living far from agriculture;
the latter frog populations likely experienced little or no exposure to pesticides said Rickey Cothran the lead author of the study
and a postdoctoral researcher in Relyea's lab. Although populations differed in their resistance to Roundup populations closer to fields were not more resistant to the herbicide.
Wood frogs living close to agricultural land were more likely to have been exposed to pesticides for many generations compared to those living far from agriculture.
Because chlorpyrifos kills in a way that is similar to many other insecticides higher resistance may have been favored each time any insecticide was sprayed said Pitt alumnus Jenise Brown (A&s'09) a coauthor of the study
and a former undergraduate researcher in Relyea's lab. In contrast herbicides have a variety of ways that they kill organisms
which may make it harder for animals to be exposed resistant when to different herbicides over many years.
In a related study published online Feb 21 in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry Relyea's Pitt research team examined
whether wood frog populations that were resistant to chlorpyrifos might also be resistant to other insecticides.
when farmers switch pesticides from year to year but little is known about how this switching of pesticides affects amphibians.
Using three commonly applied pesticides that have similar chemical properties--chlorpyrifos carbaryl and malathion--the Pitt researchers exposed 15 populations of wood frog tadpoles to high concentrations of each insecticide.
They found that wood frog populations with resistance to one insecticide also had resistance to the other insecticides.
and a graduate student in Relyea's lab. While it doesn't mean that pesticides are beneficial to amphibians our work does suggest that amphibians can evolve to resist a variety of pesticides
As they hypothesized in the study published today the researchers suspect that the reason for this cross-resistance is that chlorpyrifos kills in a way that is similar to many other insecticides.
Thus evolving higher resistance to one insecticide may provide higher resistance to others. This finding may buffer an amphibian population from suffering the consequences of exposures to new
and determine whether increased resistance occurs in additional animal species that are not the targets of pesticides.
The article published today in Evolutionary Applications is titled Proximity to agriculture is correlated with pesticide tolerance:
Evidence for the evolution of amphibian resistance to modern pesticides. The article published Feb 21 in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry is titled Cross-tolerance in amphibians:
Wood frog mortality when exposed to three insecticides with a common mode of action. Funding for both studies was provided by a National Science Foundation grant to Relyea.
and pesticides all play a role. New research indicates that the honey bee diet influences the bees'ability to withstand at least some of these assaults.
University of Illinois professor of entomology May Berenbaum who led the study said that many organisms use a group of enzymes called cytochrome P450 monooxygenases to break down foreign substances such as pesticides
which are used to metabolize synthetic pesticides became a tantalizing scientific question to her research team Berenbaum said.
so beekeepers can enhance their bees'ability to withstand pathogens and pesticides. Although she doesn't recommend that beekeepers rush out
which could lead to reduced use of pesticides in the field. Just as our cell phones will need more advanced technology to carry more information plants need better
Synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are the current solution but we can make plants better at finding
#Agencies should use common approach to evaluate risks pesticides pose to endangered specieswhen determining the potential effects pesticides could pose to endangered
Under the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act before a pesticide can be sold distributed or used in the United states EPA must ensure that it does not cause unreasonable adverse effects on the environment which includes species that are listed as endangered
If EPA determines that a pesticide is not likely to adversely affect a listed species
However if EPA determines that a pesticide is likely to adversely affect a listed species a formal consultation with FWS
or methods for determining the risks pesticides pose to listed species and their habitats. EPA FWS and NMFS have developed their own approaches
Although the agencies have tried to resolve their differences in assessment approaches they have been unsuccessful at reaching a consensus. As a result the National Research Council was asked to examine the scientific and technical issues related to determining risks posed by pesticides to listed species. The committee
is anticipated reliably by all parties involved in decisions regarding pesticide use; and clearly articulates where scientific judgment is required and the bounds within
whether a pesticide is likely to adversely affect a listed species rather than conduct a completely new analysis the assessment would likely be more effective and scientifically credible the committee determined.
or desertification we can no longer rely on synthetic pesticides and fertilizers alone.''We need to conduct much more research to better understand how to utilize the potential provided by natural ecological processes'said Professor Anten.
The use of herbicides is an important element of weed control but also harmful to the environment while more and more weeds are becoming resistant to these agents.'
The EU has banned also its farmers from using many pesticides and restricted them from other nonchemical methods of pest control
and pesticides used by applying inputs only where they are needed and in appropriate quantities. Precision agriculture will aid efforts to improve food security and also crop quality Professor Oliver notes in the article.
Pesticides kill protein-rich insects that bustard chicks rely on for rapid growth to be able to migrate come fall.
This new development opens the door to the potential that food could be created from any plant reducing the need for crops to be grown on valuable land that requires fertilizers pesticides and large amounts of water.
Now Professor Hoffmann from the University of Melbourne and Professor Michale Turelli from the University of California have shown that by introducing an insecticide resistance gene alongside the Wolbachia bacteria into the mosquito that the insects pass on the disease-blocking bacteria to other mosquitoes faster.
The approach taken in this new work involves adding a pesticide resistance gene to a newer strain of Wolbachia called wmelpop
Insecticide use is very common in dengue and malaria-prone regions and so this strategy should select for the survival of only the Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes
Prof Hoffmann added that insecticide resistance genes would not spread to the uninfected mosquito populations
and the strategy can utilize insecticides that are no longer part of active mosquito control programs. Story Source:
and pesticides can be costly and unreliable. Many sufferers resort to ineffective potentially dangerous measures such as spraying nonapproved insecticides themselves rather than hiring a professional.
Doctoral student Megan Szyndler entomologist Catherine Loudon and chemist Robert Corn of UC Irvine and entomologists Kenneth Haynes and Michael Potter of the University of Kentucky collaborated on the new study.
Modern scientific techniques let us fabricate materials at a microscopic level with the potential to'not let the bedbugs bite'without pesticides.
It also wastes energy fertilizers pesticides and other resources used in the food supply. Supplying more food however is only part of the challenge Floros emphasized.
or even eliminate the need for pesticides in several regions. Thrips are tiny insects that pierce
and closer to something that can be used commercially to essentially eliminate the need for pesticides in many growing regions Mutschler-Chu said.
because they don't have the resources to buy pesticides and there is often misuse of pesticides Mutschler-Chu said.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Cornell University. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length h
and researchers nationally are reporting growing evidence that a powerful new class of pesticides may be killing off bumblebees.
Compared with typical insecticide sprays the Bt toxins produced by genetically engineered crops are much safer for people
Although Bt crops have helped to reduce insecticide sprays boost crop yields and increase farmer profits their benefits will be short-lived
#Pesticide combination affects bees ability to learntwo new studies have highlighted a negative impact on bees'ability to learn following exposure to a combination of pesticides commonly used in agriculture.
The researchers found that the pesticides used in the research at levels shown to occur in the wild could interfere with the learning circuits in the bee's brain.
They also found that bees exposed to combined pesticides were slower to learn or completely forgot important associations between floral scent and food rewards.
and his team investigated the impact on bees'brains of two common pesticides: pesticides used on crops called neonicotinoid pesticides
and another type of pesticide coumaphos that is used in honeybee hives to kill the Varroa mite a parasitic mite that attacks the honey bee.
The intact bees'brains were exposed to pesticides in the lab at levels predicted to occur following exposure in the wild
and brain activity was recorded. They found that both types of pesticide target the same area of the bee brain involved in learning causing a loss of function.
If both pesticides were used in combination the effect was greater. The study is the first to show that these pesticides have a direct impact on pollinator brain physiology.
It was prompted by the work of collaborators Dr Geraldine Wright and Dr Sally Williamson at Newcastle University who found that combinations of these same pesticides affected learning and memory in bees.
Their studies established that when bees had been exposed to combinations of these pesticides for 4 days as many as 30%of honeybees failed to learn
or performed poorly in memory tests. Again the experiments mimicked levels that could be seen in the wild this time by feeding a sugar solution mixed with appropriate levels of pesticides.
Dr Geraldine Wright said: Pollinators perform sophisticated behaviours while foraging that require them to learn
and remember floral traits associated with food. Disruption in this important function has profound implications for honeybee colony survival
Together the researchers expressed concerns about the use of pesticides that target the same area of the brain of insects and the potential risk of toxicity to non-target insects.
Moreover they said that exposure to different combinations of pesticides that act at this site may increase this risk.
Much discussion of the risks posed by the neonicotinoid insecticides has raised important questions of their suitability for use in our environment.
However little consideration has been given to the miticidal pesticides introduced directly into honeybee hives to protect the bees from the Varroa mite.
Together these studies highlight potential dangers to pollinators of continued exposure to pesticides that target the insect nervous system and the importance of identifying combinations of pesticides that could profoundly impact pollinator survival.
and lower pesticide contamination levels in organic food a recent publication reporting a large-scale analysis of all available studies concluded no clear trend was apparent.
In recent decades peregrine and saker falcons have been listed as endangered due to rapid population declines caused by a wide range of factors including environmental change overharvesting for falconry habitat loss and bioaccumulation of pesticides (e g.
While ongoing studies explore pesticide-based approaches to control D. suzukii the new research from NC State should help scientists and farmers with other control options.
Similarly this information allows farmers to focus pesticide treatment on varieties that are most susceptible to infestation.
#New approaches for controlling pesticide exposure in childrennew research on household pesticide contamination emphasizes the need for less reliance on pesticides
Families in Boston public housing developments for instance rank pest infestation pesticide use and pest allergies second only to crime as matters of concern.
which reduces reliance on traditional pesticides Lu's team studied exposure to 19 pesticides among children in 20 families in Boston's public housing.
They found pesticides in all of the homes along with indications--such as sighting of live pests or pest debris--that traditional pesticides were not effective.
The results from the current study as well as other recent studies conducted in low-income public housing child care centers
These responses occurred where no herbicide treatments were applied. However where the use of herbicides to control competing vegetation was combined with logging debris seedling growth rates were observed the highest in the study especially where debris cover was 80 percent.
Industrial forest managers and private landowners in Washington and Oregon are already using early results of the study to prevent Scotch broom invasions Harrington said.
#Pesticide application as potential source of noroviruses in fresh food supply chainscontaminated water used to dilute pesticides could be responsible for viruses entering the food chain warn scientists.
whether contaminated water used to dilute pesticides could be a source of hnov. Farmers use various water sources in the production of fresh fruits and vegetables including well water and different types of surface water such as river water or lake water--sources
To test this theory eight different pesticides were analyzed in the study; each was diluted with hnov contaminated water.
when added to the pesticide samples. In other words: pesticides did not counteract the effects of the contaminated water.
The authors conclude that the application of pesticides on fresh produce may not only be a chemical hazard
but may in fact also be a microbiological risk factor; both having consequences on public health. Story Source:
Paradoxically most common approaches to increase agricultural efficiency such as cultivation of all available land and the use of pesticides reduce the abundance
or restoration of natural or semi-natural areas within croplands promotion of a variety of land use addition of diverse floral and nesting resources and more prudent use of insecticides that can kill pollinators.
However greenhouse gases are emitted also during the manufacture of mineral nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides agricultural machines and equipment.
Some health experts regard mycotoxins as the most serious chronic dietary risk factor greater than the potential health threats from pesticides and insecticides.
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