When I was a boy there was in May every street lamp had millions of June bugs under it at night. Also when we went to the beach on Lake Erie in June the ground, houses, and roads were covered with May flies the birds were so stuffed they just stopped eating them. If you are driving your car you would have to pull over and clean your window often. When I was 16 -17 years old I worked in a Service station call Supertest its policy was if you did not clean the windshield and check the oil you got your gas purchase free. So I got to see many bugs on windshields now you can drive a few hundred miles and only have dust no bugs. When I was younger the neighbourhood would go out with shot guns and shoot the black birds out of the trees at night and this was in a city. In the evening the black birds would make so much noise that you could not sleep. When we would look in the back yard we could easily see three to five different types of birds in the garden. I feel bad that my children will never know the abundance in nature that I seen.
Where I live we still have a mayfly problem. I was a toll taker, night shift, on a bridge across the Mississippi river. Sometimes the mayfly's were so bad we had to shut off the bridge lights. I feel bad too, about how things have changed. The farm we lived on is now a housing development and golf course. The house my dad built, on the one block long street with corn fields and pastures at the end, is still there. But, the fields and pastures at the end of the street are now a little league complex. Right next to that is a soccer complex. All that land was rich, black soil, now gone forever. They could have built those sports fields south of town, where the land is sandy and less desirable for crops.
@Martin Alonzo - could it be the reason birds and other animals are declining is because people shoot them !
I'm probably killing a few pests myself since I have Clark's Pest control, mainly for Black widows. Also where you live is a factor. I don't see too many Mosquitos in Fresno but when I visit my son in Illinois there's a lot more. I also see lightening bugs there but not here. I've also never had so many black widows as I do in Fresno. As for Blackbirds, don't see many here but by my daughter on the coast, my 17 yr old grandson would take his air soft gun and shoot them or try to anyway...something he's not allowed to do but still tries.
Ecosystems go through stages. When you remove one plant/creature, sometimes others die, but other times new ones 'move in.' It is the same with anything about nature, such as climate. It will fluctuate and always has. I think that humans have done a lot of bad things when it comes to harming nature, but I don't think that nature is dying off completely, nor do I think that all of what is dying is entirely our fault.
@Diana Kristof - Can't agree with you there I watch countless hours on nature, many species are on the decline because of man We will never replace the Cheetah, Lion - Elephants etc ........... Its down to the good of many people that are doing their best to ensure these animals do not die out Its a hard task though
I think people are shooting fewer of nature's creatures today than at any time in the history of the continent, after guns were invented. If there is a decline in small creatures, such as butterflies, mayflies and the like, I'd guess that there are a couple of primary reasons: people are changing the landscapes from those that would be friendly to such creatures to those that are not, and the effects of insecticides, hybrid plants, GMO crops, and the like. Larger animals, such as lions and elephants are surely being hunted into extinction on the one hand, and over-managed on the other. There is also the fact that the planet has always been in flux so, as areas of the world become hostile to one species of animal, it become friendly to another. Anyone who believes in evolution shouldn't worry about this, however.
Patsy, if you look back at what I said, I didn't say that man was not responsible for any of it. I said I didn't think we are responsible for ALL of it. I thoroughly agree with you that many species have declined because of humans. I also agree with Ken though. 100-150 years ago, hunting lions and elephants was neither illegal nor generally thought of to be immoral, so a lot more of it was happening than now. Humanity as a whole has changed its tune in that light. Now, it may be too late, but that is another matter.
Sometimes too an over abundance of certain animals can be a problem also. For example, food sources. Too many animals and not enough food for all of them. Seems nature is quite a balancing act.
Also, I"m not sure you can say we will never replace the cheetah, lion or elephant, considering none of those are yet extinct. The cheetah is at 'vulnerable' status, as are lions. Indian elephants are 'severely endangered' and Asian elephants are 'endangered.' All of this is deeply concerning and sad. Yet, while they still exist, there is a possibility they could increase. Don't misunerstand me, I'm not saying likely, I'm saying possible.
I do not believe nature is dieing, but I do believe that it is being crowded out. More people means more work is needed. And housing and business accommodations musr be built. Thois worries and saddens me a great deal.
I cannot share my experience about nature since I was born and raised in a city apartment. But last night I was reading an article in the New York Times supplement about Lake Poopo in Bolivia which had dried up. It used to be the center of life of the inhabitants numbering thousands of families. Now people have moved as far as 300 kilometers in search of livelihood. The old timers in the place said that it is the vengeance of nature to what we are doing. Maybe yes because the carbon problem is still not abated since factories in China still have their diesel powered incinerators. Do I have to mention our vehicles?
I saw a total of one June bug this year but I think that had more to do with the weird weather we had, since June had come and gone before we had any warm weather, and the warmer days we did have were followed by freezes. Last year and every year before that we had June bugs by the hundreds, so I don't think they've disappeared.
As Ken rightly said, the little creatures are losing their habitat, due to building works and pesticides Diana - you are right, not 'extinct' yet - would have been though if not for the caring work done by conservation efforts These animals would be a tragic loss, if not for them To kill a magnificent creature such as the elephant purely for ivory - is sickening and I do detest those that pursue this
It was really very sad to read stories about nature experiences we've had that somehow are gone and may never be experienced by the future generations. In a recent nature news I've read online, the one currently happening with the almost dried up Lake Urmia in Iran was a catastrophe that global warming and climate change aside from people misuse were likely to have caused its very fast deterioration. See its aerial shots before and now. [photo from marstonvale] Read the lake's story: ALL DRIED UP