Tag Archives: wild pollinator

Neonic makers might pay for research about neonics on the land

Posted on July 28, 2014 by argylesock

Here in Europe, three insect-killing neonicotinoids are under a temporary ban. During the ban our UK Government is welcoming new research. It’s now become known that pesticide manufacturers might fund some of this research. Vested interests! Last year my fellow … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, horticulture, knowledge transfer | Tagged arthropod, Bayer, brassica, bumblebee, Europe, finance, Heath_David, honeybee, hymenopteran, insect, insecticide, law, neonicotinoid, oilseed, Paterson_Owen, pesticide, plant_dicot, pollination, rapeseed, research, seed dressing, Syngenta, Truss_Elizabeth, wild bee, wild pollinator | 7 Comments

Gardens for wildlife

Posted on June 1, 2014 by argylesock

Here in Britain the gardening season looks good so far. Here’s an article about gardening for bees and other wildlife. Untidy gardeners like me are good gardeners for wildlife. It’s now a year since hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) bred in my … Continue reading →

Posted in ecology, horticulture, miniculture | Tagged apiculture, arthropod, breeding, bumblebee, clover, conservation, ecosystem, Europe, flower, foraging, fruit, garden, gardener, green manure, hedgehog, herb, hibernation, honeybee, hymenopteran, insect, invertebrate, leaf, mammal, nest, plant_dicot, rat, salad, vegetable, vertebrate, weed, wild bee, wild food, wild pollinator, wildlife | Leave a comment

Feature: Protecting the pollinators part 1 – bees and ecology

Posted on April 21, 2014 by argylesock

argylesock says… We need bees and other pollinators. We really, really need them. Here’s the first of three articles about pollinators, from the Wellcome Trust blog, which I’ll pass on today.

Posted in agriculture, ecology, food, miniculture | Tagged apiculture, arachnid, arthropod, beetle, biodiversity, bumblebee, coleopteran, conservation, crop, Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, dipteran, disease, ecosystem, habitat loss, honeybee, hoverfly, hymenopteran, insect, mite, pesticide, plant_dicot, plant_monocot, pollination, research, seed, Varroa destructor, virus, wasp, wild bee, wild pollinator | 2 Comments

Revealed: the chemical blitz bees face in fields

Posted on January 30, 2014 by argylesock

Dave Goulson at The Conversation tells us about insecticides on British crops. Last year on oilseed rape (rapeseed, canola, Brassica napus) Prof Goulson found the neonicotinoid called thiamethoxam (which, by now, is temporarily banned), the pyrethroids called beta-cyfluthrin and alpha-cypermethrin, … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, knowledge transfer, money and trade | Tagged alpha-cypermethrin, arthropod, beta-cyfluthrin, brassica, bumblebee, canola, crop, farmer, fungicide, fungus, honeybee, hymenopteran, insect, insecticide, integrated pest management, neonicotinoid, oilseed, pest, pesticide, plant_dicot, plant_monocot, pollination, pollution, prothioconazole, pyrethroid, rapeseed, thiamethoxam, trade, wild bee, wild pollinator | 1 Comment

Pesticide makers have found a new way to kill bees

Posted on December 18, 2013 by argylesock

argylesock says… Only a few days ago here in Europe, a temporary ban came into place on three neonics. Clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam. Now another neonic called sulfoxaflor, made by the chemical and biotech giant Dow AgroSciences, has been approved … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, money and trade | Tagged arthropod, bumblebee, butterfly, clothianidin, conservation, honeybee, hymenopteran, imidacloprid, insect, insecticide, law, lepidopteran, neonicotinoid, pesticide, pollination, sulfoxaflor, thiamethoxam, Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, wild bee, wild pollinator | 2 Comments

Neonic ban starts today

Posted on December 1, 2013 by argylesock

Today a two-year ban on three insecticides called neonics (neonicotinoids) came into force across the European Union (EU). The neonics are used as seed dressings to reduce pest attacks. Their names are clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam. The neonics have been … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, horticulture | Tagged arthropod, clothianidin, conservation, crop, ecosystem, farmer, honeybee, hymenopteran, imidacloprid, insect, insecticide, law, neonicotinoid, pest, pesticide, plant_dicot, plant_monocot, politics, pollination, seed, thiamethoxam, wild bee, wild pollinator | 18 Comments

Nature conservation succeeds in parts of Europe

Posted on October 8, 2013 by argylesock

The State of Nature Report was sobering news for us in Britain in May 2013. I told you about it at the time. But a few weeks later, evidence came in Ecology Letters that conservation efforts may be paying off … Continue reading →

Posted in ecology, knowledge transfer, money and trade | Tagged arthropod, beetle, biodiversity, butterfly, coleopteran, conservation, data, dipteran, ecosystem, finance, habitat loss, history, hymenopteran, insect, intensive, knowledge, land use, lepidopteran, moth, pollination, pollution, research, wild pollinator, wildlife | 3 Comments

Living With Neonicotinoids

Posted on September 22, 2013 by argylesock

Originally posted on Living With Insects Blog:
Bumblebee Pollinating a Flower It is clear that neonicotinoid insecticides kill bees. The severity of the problem and what to do about it are under debate. Many countries in Europe have banned the…

Posted in agriculture, ecology, miniculture | Tagged apiculture, arthropod, conservation, corn, crop, ecosystem, entomoculture, honeybee, hymenopteran, insect, insecticide, label, law, maize, neonicotinoid, pesticide, plant_dicot, plant_monocot, pollination, seed, soya, wild bee, wild pollinator | Leave a comment

In the United States, new pesticide labels will better protect bees and other pollinators

Posted on August 18, 2013 by argylesock

This week the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced ‘new pesticide labels that prohibit use of some neonicotinoid pesticide products where bees are present.’ You can see the new label design here. These new labels are supposed to stop people … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, horticulture, miniculture | Tagged apiculture, arthropod, clothianidin, colony collapse disorder, conservation, dinotefuran, disease, entomoculture, farmer, gardener, honeybee, hymenopteran, imidacloprid, insect, insecticide, law, microlivestock, neonicotinoid, pesticide, pollination, thiamethoxam, wild bee, wild pollinator | 12 Comments

Loss of wild pollinators serious threat to crop yields, study finds | Environment | The Guardian

Posted on August 3, 2013 by argylesock

Originally posted on seeds for natural justice:
Loss of wild pollinators serious threat to crop yields, study finds | Environment | The Guardian. Wild bees and other insects twice as effective as honeybees in producing seeds and fruit on crops…

Posted in agriculture, ecology, food, horticulture | Tagged arthropod, conservation, crop, Europe, food, food security, forest, habitat fragmentation, hymenopteran, insect, plant_dicot, pollen, pollination, research, wild bee, wild pollinator, woodland | Leave a comment