Register on our website Dragonrun.org beginning at 9:00 am March 8th. If you are signing up for more than one person, please prepare ahead. We will need the full name, cell phone number, and email address of each individual participant. (must be 18 years and older ) A donation of $60 is requested at the time of signup using a credit card.
Our Spring Paddle season runs from April 18th to May 22nd.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/17/opinion/endangered-species-act-trump.html
The front page and above the fold article was written by Steven Munson, Chris Mooney, Juliet Eilperin and John Muyskens. Photos are by Salwan Georges.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/national/climate-environment/climate-change-america/
Recommend the interactive climate maps by county and analysis of the issue in some cases by state or region.
new study about effects of pesticides on pollinators
DiBartolomeis, M., et al. (2019). "An assessment of acute insecticide toxicity loading (AITL) of chemical pesticides used on agricultural land in the United States." PLoS ONE 14(8): e0220029.
We present a method for calculating the Acute Insecticide Toxicity Loading (AITL) on US agricultural lands and surrounding areas and an assessment of the changes in AITL from 1992 through 2014. The AITL method accounts for the total mass of insecticides used in the US, acute toxicity to insects using honey bee contact and oral LD50 as reference values for arthropod toxicity, and the environmental persistence of the pesticides. This screening analysis shows that the types of synthetic insecticides applied to agricultural lands have fundamentally shifted over the last two decades from predominantly organophosphorus and N-methyl carbamate pesticides to a mix dominated by neonicotinoids and pyrethroids. The neonicotinoids are generally applied to US agricultural land at lower application rates per acre; however, they are considerably more toxic to insects and generally persist longer in the environment. We found a 48- and 4-fold increase in AITL from 1992 to 2014 for oral and contact toxicity, respectively. Neonicotinoids are primarily responsible for this increase, representing between 61 to nearly 99 percent of the total toxicity loading in 2014. The crops most responsible for the increase in AITL are corn and soybeans, with particularly large increases in relative soybean contributions to AITL between 2010 and 2014. Oral exposures are of potentially greater concern because of the relatively higher toxicity (low LD50s) and greater likelihood of exposure from residues in pollen, nectar, guttation water, and other environmental media. Using AITL to assess oral toxicity by class of pesticide, the neonicotinoids accounted for nearly 92 percent of total AITL from 1992 to 2014. Chlorpyrifos, the fifth most widely used insecticide during this time contributed just 1.4 percent of total AITL based on oral LD50s. Although we use some simplifying assumptions, our screening analysis demonstrates an increase in pesticide toxicity loading over the past 26 years, which potentially threatens the health of honey bees and other pollinators and may contribute to declines in beneficial insect populations as well as insectivorous birds and other insect consumers.
And a National Geographic story about the article:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/08/insect-apocalypse-under-way-toxic-pesticides-agriculture/
--
Dr. David W. Inouye
Professor Emeritus
Department of Biology
Here is an article featuring Lauren Cruz and the RRVNWR that ran August 17.
The butterfly garden is nurtured and tended by Earline Walker and Bryna Brennan.
https://menokinrubblewithacause.com/2018/09/13/its-good-to-have-friends/
A group of Northern Neck VA Master Naturalists and a Nature Conservancy ranger went to Voorhees Nature Preserve, Nature Conservancy, at the Westmoreland Berry Farm in Westmoreland county, VA in mid March. We went to perform trail maintenance, inspect the preserve after the heavy wind storms this winter and look for early bloomers and ephemerals. There were a total of 5 plants that were blooming or almost blooming, 3 NN natives and 2 introduced species.
Review by Jeff Wright
I read Following the Wild Bees toward expanding my understanding of those amazing little flying objects – bees. As an avid birder and a novice butterfly and dragonfly observer I decided that I needed to be able to better identify and understand bees. I am not yet ready to ID mosquitoes as a hobby – before or after they bite.
This excellent and easily readable book focused on the ancient practice and sport of bee hunting and bee lining. With the NNMN chapter’s past and current focus on pollinators, meadows, and bees I picked up the book as a reference and was extremely pleased that it is also a great read. The book focuses – on a second way – besides beekeeping – for people to get close to these fascinating creatures. The open - air sport called bee hunting has the bee hunter tracking, locating, identifying, and reporting on bees living in the wild. This sport and related agricultural practices can be traced back to writings from the first century A.D. and was practiced widely in Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Africa.
Following the Wild Bees is scientific natural history at its very best: original, authentic, and exciting. It is at the same time science, science history, adventure, sport, and treasure hunting."
-- Edward O. Wilson, Harvard University
"Seeley's passion for the social insects blazes as he quotes historical accounts by Henry David Thoreau and describes the intricacies of the chase, from baiting with anise - scented sugar syrup to patiently amassing location data"
-- Barb Kiser, Nature
The book received an Honorable Mention for the 2017 PROSE Award in Popular Science and Popular Mathematics, Association of American Publishers. The author, Thomas D. Seeley, is a Professor in Biology in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at Cornell University . “His research focuses on the behavior, social life, and ecology of honey bees and has been summarized in four books: Honeybee Ecology (1985, Princeton), The Wisdom of the Hive (1995, Harvard), Honeybee Democracy (2010, Princeton), and Following the Wild Bees (2016, Princeton).”
Following the Wild Bees , 2016, Princeton University Press, is available in Hardback and as an E - book
Attention all potential meadow makers:
This is the perfect time of year to go through seed catalogues and fantasize about your spring meadow.
To get you started, below are some places to buy seeds. Not all of the seeds are native to the Northern Neck. For more information on our natives refer to NNNPS.org.
The Virginia Master Naturalist program is open to all, regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, veteran status, or any other basis protected by law. An equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.
nnmnemail21@gmail.com
