a recent study of insect life in protected nature reserves in germany 
got the most modest attention in our busy trumpian world. 
in the last 27 years, however, researchers found that flying insect populations there 
had dropped 76% seasonally and 82% in mid-summer (when insect numbers 
are at their peak). if you aren’t instantly struck by those figures, let me assure you 
that they are stunning enough to have been labeled an “insectageddon,” 
and much of what's happening may be attributable to the massive use of pesticides 
and the destruction of habitat that has turned so much of the planet into farmland 
and in the process “into a wildlife desert.” 
and much as most of us may not love insects, 
which make up about two-thirds of all life 
on this planet, keep in mind that they are crucial 
both as pollinators and prey for this world as we know it.


from tomgram