UK wildlife, gaining ground but losing numbers ?
by Chris, 22 May, 2020, 0 comments
Nearly every report that one comes across says that many plant and animal species are under threat. The causes are many but may be broadly summarised as
Fragmentation, loss or destruction of natural habitats (as a result of intensive and extending agriculture, roadways, railways etc)
Pesticides and pollution (e.g. neonicotinoids, eutrophication as a result of fertiliser use)
Impacts of climate change
Some of the changes are more obvious in every day terms than others, for example, the drop in insect numbers is revealed by the car windscreen ‘test’ : the splatometer. A survey of insects hitting car windscreens in rural parts of Denmark [using data collected between 1997 to 2017] found a decline of some 80%. There was a similar decline in the number of swallows and martins, (they depend on insects for their food). Read more...
