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From:
Amir Kassam <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Amir Kassam <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Fri, 21 Feb 2020 16:23:17 +0000
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*Global CA-CoP* *CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE*

*for sustainable agriculture and land management*

Dear Susbscribers,

Please see interesting communication from David Duthie from BIOPLAN on
Biodiversity on the radar screen.

Apologies for any cross-posting.

*Amir Kassam *

*Moderator*

*Global CA-CoP*

e-mail: [log in to unmask]

URL: http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture



*Conservation Agriculture is an ecosystem approach to regenerative
sustainable agriculture and land management based on the practical
application of context-specific and locally adapted three interlinked
principles of: (i) Continuous no or minimum mechanical soil disturbance
(no-till seeding/planting and weeding, and minimum soil disturbance with
all other farm operations including harvesting);  (ii) permanent
maintenance of soil mulch cover (crop biomass, stubble and cover crops);
and (iii) diversification of cropping system (economically, environmentally
and socially adapted rotations and/or sequences and/or associations
involving annuals and/or perennials, including legumes and cover crops),
along with other complementary good agricultural production and land
management practices. Conservation Agriculture systems are present in all
continents, involving rainfed and irrigated systems including annual
cropland systems, perennial systems, orchards and plantation systems,
agroforestry systems, crop-livestock systems, pasture and rangeland
systems, organic production systems and rice-based systems. Conservation
Tillage, Reduced Tillage and Minimum Tillage are not Conservation
Agriculture, and nor is No-Till on its own* (more at:
http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture).


---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: David Duthie <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Fri, 21 Feb 2020 at 15:26
Subject: Biodiversity on the radar screen
To: bioplan <[log in to unmask]>


Dear BIOPLANNERS,



As locust swarms of biblical proportions sweep their way across East Africa
(see video here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPG-3pr1s304&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854884741&sdata=qt6r0dT90u4DpMpZvSqJjfsV%2B4Z%2FYR1lk2lrGzxDsX8%3D&reserved=0>),
insect biodiversity seems to have been catching my attention a lot this
week – but more on that below.



First, a some recent “big picture” calls for better protection of
biodiversity – one from a rather unusual source that might help in the
build-up to CoP15. Twenty-three Former Foreign Ministers, now part of the Aspen
Institute
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aspeninstitute.org%2Fabout%2F%23history&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854894699&sdata=CeuOGBFTnNYLwXTejVdq4nLYoYPpvH%2BXlo0IoD9oGLA%3D&reserved=0>,
have issued a “*Call on World Leaders to Protect Biodiversity*” – read it
in English here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aspeninstitute.org%2Fof-interest%2Ftwenty-three-former-foreign-ministers-call-on-world-leaders-to-protect-biodiversity%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854894699&sdata=T7EtfmkSWEPli9LseqT5LvWFZTNOHIesSOEMHDkU1iE%3D&reserved=0>,
or Spanish
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aspeninstitute.org%2Fcontent%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F02%2FAspen-Ministers-Forum-30x30-Statement-with-Signatories-EMBARGOED-until-18-February-2020_SPANISH.pdf%3F_ga%3D2.9226677.1842300122.1582058068-1987433654.1582058068&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854904657&sdata=ZEPCkYslkdgb%2Fr8QEwMGajM3%2Fo963OzO%2BKF%2FFUyu6M0%3D&reserved=0>,
or French
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aspeninstitute.org%2Fcontent%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F02%2FAspen-Ministers-Forum-30x30-Statement-with-Signatories-EMBARGOED-until-18-February-2020_FRENCH.pdf%3F_ga%3D2.225764762.1842300122.1582058068-1987433654.1582058068&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854904657&sdata=vYcsRn3Qmlln9kJilley4ura%2BLmIxsHTviQz9%2BBQVJg%3D&reserved=0>
.



The lead editorial, and a couple of supporting, of the science journal
Nature shine a spotlight on the negotiations taking place under the
Convention on Biological Diversity next week, and leading up to CoP15 in
Kunming, China at the end of the year.



Here are links to the three short pieces………



Editorial, ‘*The United Nations Must Get Its New Biodiversity Targets
Right’*, Nature, 578 (2020), 337–38;
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00450-5
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1038%2Fd41586-020-00450-5&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854914612&sdata=qu8U4a3OUq7XvMelmYQgPwxQZVoyMczUJlPYf9%2B7REg%3D&reserved=0>



Mallapaty, Smriti, ‘*China Takes Centre Stage in Global Biodiversity Push’*,
Nature, 578 (2020), 345–46; http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00362-4
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1038%2Fd41586-020-00362-4&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854914612&sdata=Y2oHTk17pr5W9CImSCU2r1saTDy5lmB7lHzcx3glYnI%3D&reserved=0>



Watson, James E. M., et al. (2020) ‘*Set a Global Target for Ecosystems*’,
Nature, 578: 360–62; http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-00446-1
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1038%2Fd41586-020-00446-1&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854924565&sdata=3Kvp%2Fplmn81DEswZuR%2Bwcwej4Pj7z9r8Rv8gT%2F7wPNE%3D&reserved=0>
.



Now, back to those insects.



Following the recent “World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscientistswarning.forestry.oregonstate.edu%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854924565&sdata=dgwLTG4PfpXf%2FAL5mUyODEv3p7aS4JwZbph1rRdDd50%3D&reserved=0>”
(posted previously) which built on the original “World scientists’ warning
to humanity
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ucsusa.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fattach%2F2017%2F11%2FWorld%2520Scientists%2527%2520Warning%2520to%2520Humanity%25201992.pdf&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854924565&sdata=q14KJnlDV7Jw6BQurir6E6rZ0pgC8WEMdwPTlVpl6nc%3D&reserved=0>”
and the “World scientists’ warning to humanity: A second notice
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Facademic.oup.com%2Fbioscience%2Farticle%2F67%2F12%2F1026%2F4605229&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854934521&sdata=xSjM%2Bo7hEBkxUFH%2BbDHYeWfuwgyRyJ%2B%2BjTxKkjMOqNQ%3D&reserved=0>”,
there have been a plethora of additional taxon-specific “warnings” – see
here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscientistswarning.forestry.oregonstate.edu%2Fjournal-articles-related-scientists-warning&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854934521&sdata=9Qm22hAwwnAMtDsEVuYBJHKTVnTs65Xnq57fVDfyRK8%3D&reserved=0>.




Now, entomologists have got in on the act, with their own warning to
humanity and a set of proposed counter-measures. Below are the metadata of
the two articles……..and a cover story from The UK Guardian newspaper can be
accessed here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fenvironment%2F2020%2Ffeb%2F20%2Ffates-humans-insects-intertwined-scientists-population-collapse&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854944479&sdata=9emfII4aOCduuMg9HoqFIdIOJOm3soKCnns0ZBISn%2B0%3D&reserved=0>
.



Cardoso, Pedro et al. (2020) ‘*Scientists' Warning to Humanity on Insect
Extinctions*’, Biological Conservation, 2020, 108426;
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108426
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1016%2Fj.biocon.2020.108426&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854944479&sdata=cWsXTIGixcbLIArVEBqz81WTnjMWIpgxJpxbIo00Xt8%3D&reserved=0>
(open access)



*Here we build on the manifesto ‘World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity,
issued by the Alliance of World Scientists. As a group of conservation
biologists deeply concerned about the decline of insect populations, we
here review what we know about the drivers of insect extinctions, their
consequences, and how extinctions can negatively impact humanity. We are
causing insect extinctions by driving habitat loss, degradation, and
fragmentation, use of polluting and harmful substances, the spread of
invasive species, global climate change, direct overexploitation, and
co-ex- tinction of species dependent on other species. With insect
extinctions, we lose much more than species. We lose abundance and biomass
of insects, diversity across space and time with consequent homogenization,
large parts of the tree of life, unique ecological functions and traits,
and fundamental parts of extensive networks of biotic interactions. Such
losses lead to the decline of key ecosystem services on which humanity
depends. From pollination and decomposition, to being resources for new
medicines, habitat quality indication and many others, insects provide
essential and irreplaceable services. We appeal for urgent action to close
key knowledge gaps and curb insect extinctions. An investment in research
programs that generate local, regional and global strategies that counter
this trend is essential. Solutions are available and implementable, but
urgent action is needed now to match our intentions.*



Samways, Michael J. et al. (2020) ‘*Solutions for Humanity on How to
Conserve Insects*’, Biological Conservation, 2020, 108427;
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108427
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1016%2Fj.biocon.2020.108427&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854954434&sdata=GDys77wPg3jhtqw9yU5xmB1kPamwQN%2B8gDnCtkkgyOI%3D&reserved=0>
(open access)



*The fate of humans and insects intertwine, especially through the medium
of plants. Global environmental change, including land transformation and
contamination, is causing concerning insect diversity loss, articulated in
the companion review Scientists' warning to humanity on insect extinctions.
Yet, despite a sound philosophical foundation, recognized ethical values,
and scientific evidence, globally we are performing poorly at instigating
effective insect conservation. As insects are a major component of the
tapestry of life, insect conservation would do well to integrate better
with overall biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation. This
also involves popularizing insects, especially through use of iconic
species, through more media coverage, and more inclusive education. Insect
conservationists need to liaise better with decision makers, stakeholders,
and land managers, especially at the conceptually familiar scale of the
landscape. Enough evidence is now available, and synthesized here, which
illustrates that multiple strategies work at local levels towards saving
insects. We now need to expand these locally-crafted strategies globally.
Tangible actions include ensuring maintenance of biotic complexity,
especially through improving temporal and spatial heterogeneity, functional
connectivity, and metapopulation dynamics, while maintaining unique
habitats, across landscape mosaics, as well as instigating better
communication. Key is to have more expansive sustainable agriculture and
forestry, improved regulation and prevention of environmental risks, and
greater recognition of protected areas alongside agro-ecology in novel
landscapes. Future-proofing insect diversity is now critical, with the
benefits far reaching, including continued provision of valuable ecosystem
services and the conservation of a rich and impressive component of Earth's
biodiversity.*



Whilst the can be no doubt that insect populations are in decline in most
places, we still know very little about insect diversity and population
density for many places. Below are three examples of the extraordinary
lengths that entomologists, aided and abetted by other specialists, will go
to in order improve our knowledge………..



The first is an empirical test of the often-quoted lack of insects
“splatted” on cars compared with the past, one in Denmark
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fonlinelibrary.wiley.com%2Fdoi%2Ffull%2F10.1002%2Fece3.5236&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854954434&sdata=4u9bP2Af9BahM%2Bd0JBMDcLKke3q9MqlqORUBFo7YYGE%3D&reserved=0>
and one in Kent, England
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2020-02%2FBugs%2520Matter%2520report%2520website%2520version_0.pdf&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854954434&sdata=jU1WRWgeesKzf3KfcsJmT%2B9nkTDFfkkkCTgDF3qX5g8%3D&reserved=0>.
Both found significant declines in "splats". Both studies are free to
access, and are described in a Guardian cover story here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fenvironment%2F2020%2Ffeb%2F12%2Fcar-splatometer-tests-reveal-huge-decline-number-insects&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854964390&sdata=8pft5sDMaiRxKeuQE2GGsaj8d2z8FavGFHiUgI96ZV8%3D&reserved=0>
.



The second, the Swedish Malaise Trap Project (SMTP), a 15 year collection
exercise gathering 20 million specimens is summarised here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fphys.org%2Fnews%2F2020-02-fifteen-years-million-insects-sweden.html&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C1%7C637178215854964390&sdata=9o8wzNp0JzhA9CosQ4l6aFHpe2PtP8fLvImF4gMMECw%3D&reserved=0>
and the metadata are below……..



Karlsson, Dave, Emily Hartop, Mattias Forshage, Mathias Jaschhof, and
Fredrik Ronquist, ‘*The Swedish Malaise Trap Project: a 15 Year
Retrospective on a Countrywide Insect Inventory*’, Biodiversity Data
Journal, 8 (2020), e47255  http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.8.e47255
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.3897%2FBDJ.8.e47255&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854974344&sdata=7BA7uR%2FwxvlXiHbCpLQKAMRN7FworL21YRkevBeUj5w%3D&reserved=0>
(OA)



*The Swedish Malaise Trap Project (SMTP) is one of the most ambitious
insect inventories ever attempted. The project was designed to target
poorly known insect groups across a diverse range of habitats in Sweden.
The field campaign involved the deployment of 73 Malaise traps at 55
localities across the country for three years (2003-2006). Over the past 15
years, the collected material has been hand sorted by trained technicians
into over 300 taxonomic fractions suitable for expert attention. The
resulting collection is a tremendous asset for entomologists around the
world, especially as we now face a desperate need for baseline data to
evaluate phenomena like insect decline and climate change. Here, we
describe the history, organisation, methodology and logistics of the SMTP,
focusing on the rationale for the decisions taken and the lessons learned
along the way. The SMTP represents one of the early instances of community
science applied to large-scale inventory work, with a heavy reliance on
volunteers in both the field and the laboratory. We give estimates of both
staff effort and volunteer effort involved. The project has been funded by
the Swedish Taxonomy Initiative; in total, the inventory has cost less than
30 million SEK (approximately 3.1 million USD). Based on a subset of the
samples, we characterise the size and taxonomic composition of the SMTP
material. Several different extrapolation methods suggest that the material
comprises around 20 million specimens in total. The material is dominated
by Diptera (75% of the specimens) and Hymenoptera (15% of specimens).
Amongst the Diptera, the dominant groups are Chironomidae (37% of
specimens), Sciaridae (15%), Phoridae (13%), Cecidomyiidae (9.5%) and
Mycetophilidae (9.4%). Within Hymenoptera, the major groups are
Ichneumonidae (44% of specimens), Diaprioidea (19%), Braconidae (9.6%),
Platygastroidea (8.5%) and Chalcidoidea (7.9%). The taxonomic composition
varies with latitude and season. Several Diptera and Hymenoptera groups are
more common in non-summer samples (collected from September to April) and
in the North, while others show the opposite pattern. About 1% of the total
material has been processed and identified by experts so far. This material
represents over 4,000 species. One third of these had not been recorded
from Sweden before and almost 700 of them are new to science. These results
reveal the large amounts of taxonomic work still needed on Palaearctic
insect faunas. Based on the SMTP experiences, we discuss aspects of
planning and conducting future large-scale insect inventory projects using
mainly traditional approaches in relation to more recent approaches that
rely on molecular techniques.*



Finally, and close to my heart because my Ph.D. was on migration of moths,
is a remarkable collaboration, the BioDAR project, which is using weather
radar, balloons and blenders to try and measure the density of flying
insects at higher altitudes. The evolution of the project is described in
WIRED magazine’s long read here
<https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wired.co.uk%2Farticle%2Finsect-populations-biodar-weather-radar&data=02%7C01%7Cbioplan%40groups.undp.org%7Cd54ab197e83248ea63e308d7b6361d94%7Cb3e5db5e2944483799f57488ace54319%7C0%7C0%7C637178215854974344&sdata=wyD4mE6mf2TVn33zdWz%2B%2F3el1N0AIbhuGbz1yprTXpk%3D&reserved=0>
.


Best wishes


David Duthie

****************

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