1. Good Organic Gardening - January-February 2016

THE GRAPEVINE | News
the grapevine
Environmental news and updates compiled by Jo Immig
The Richmond
birdwing butterfly
Living with insects
Insects, on the whole, get a bad rap. Sure,
they can ruin a picnic and a good night’s
sleep, but does that warrant an all-out
war on bugs?
Ever since pesticides were redeployed
after World War II to kill insects instead
of people, pesticide use has skyrocketed
with no apparent end in sight. Dousing the
planet in pesticides is having a significant
impact on insect numbers and diversity.
It’s also messing with our health as a
growing number of pesticide residues
are being detected in our bodies and the
environment, causing impacts ranging
from the feminism of frogs to cancers.
Insects are the most diverse organisms
on Earth, representing three-quarters of
the animal kingdom — an evolutionary
feat to be admired. Insect diversity is
greatest in tropical regions, which are
being destroyed at a rapid rate across
the globe.
Around 1 million of an estimated 2–6
million insect species have been classified.
Despite their prolific numbers, it’s thought
that around 52 per cent of insect species
are at risk of extinction, according to
Endangered Species International. Many
species have probably become extinct
without ever being observed or recorded.
A few years ago, I went to a talk given
by David Suzuki in my hometown of
Bangalow, NSW. It was a hot summer’s
night and the windows and doors of the
community hall were left open for the
breeze. “Where are all the insects?”
Suzuki asked. Given the subtropical
climate, the room should have been
teeming with them and yet there were
few and it was strangely silent outside.
The region where I live was stripped of
99 per cent of its rainforest cover during
the 19th century as the timber cutters
and dairy industry took over, and many
species died off. There’s a concerted effort
to bring some insects back from the brink,
including the Richmond birdwing butterfly
(Ornithoptera richmondia), once abundant
in the area. I’ve only had the pleasure of
seeing one in our garden because we
planted the specific vine it feeds on. It was
just magnificent with its giant iridescent
green and black wings and a splash of red
on its thorax.
Like other animals, insects occupy
While most of us know the
plight of the European
honeybee, an essential
pollinating insect, not so
many are aware of the
numerous other species
of pollinating insects that
are also at risk or are
already extinct.
restricted small ranges, making their
populations highly vulnerable to humaninduced
extinctions as habitats are
disturbed and destroyed.
We gardeners know how dependent
we are on some insects to pollinate
plants that produce the food we eat and
that they’re a fundamental part of the
functioning ecosystem all species depend
on. While most of us know the plight of
the European honeybee, an essential
pollinating insect, not so many are
aware of the numerous other species of
pollinating insects that are also at risk
or already extinct.
The Australian pesticide regulator, the
APVMA, does not properly assess the
impact of pesticides on pollinating insects such
as bees when it registers pesticide products.
For the sake of preventing the damage caused
by a few insects to crops, all other insects
are killed, many of them beneficial.
It’s difficult to find accurate figures for
the volume of pesticides used globally
each year, but the overall trend indicates
pesticide use is on the increase. The
introduction of genetically engineered
crops, which were initially touted as a
way to reduce pesticides, has in fact
significantly contributed to the increase.
Only aggregated sales figures for
pesticides are available in Australia. There
are no usage data, so we have no idea
what volume of pesticides is applied to
the Australian environment each year.
Based on registrations of pesticide
products, however, we do know that up to
30 per cent of all pesticide products are
registered for non-agricultural purposes,
including urban pest control and house
and garden products.
By making better choices you can help
insects survive and thrive:
Plant native trees, shrubs and flowers
for your region, to create habitat for
local insects.
Avoid hybrids and “double bloom”
varieties because insects often can’t
get to the nectar as their mouthparts
are not adapted to the task.
Avoid using outdoor “bug zappers”
because they indiscriminately kill all
insects and usually fail to attract the
insects, such as mosquitoes, that
people are hoping to avoid.
Use fly screens on windows and
doors and draft excluders to minimise
unwanted insects indoors.
Leave areas of wildness and use
natural ground covers in your garden
to encourage insect diversity.
Use only open-pollinated, certified
organic seeds and other inputs in
your garden.
Check when purchasing potted plants
as many potting mixes have been
treated with systemic pesticides that
can be transferred to your garden.
Avoid the use of pesticides in your
garden, inside your home or on your
body. There are safer, non-chemical
ways to deal with most situations.
Insects are an integral part of the web
of life on this planet. Destroy a few strands
and the entire web could unravel.
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