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The Effects of Agriculture on WildlifeBy Sarah Langan
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Pesticides• Include insecticides and
herbicides• Routinely applied by farmers
to increase crop yields• Ariel spraying• Ground spraying• Granules
• Wildlife is exposed to pesticides by• Breathing them in • Ingesting them through contaminated
food and water• Absorbing them through their skin or feathers
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Insecticides• Eliminate crop pests by attacking their central nervous systems• Direct affects on wildlife include• Sickness • Behavioral changes• Diminished reproductive abilities• Death
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DDT• Persists in the environment, insoluble in
water, and accumulates in runoff• Fat solubility permits bioaccumulation • Effects bald eagle, osprey, peregrine falcon, and other birds• Causes the shells of the birds’ eggs to become so thin that they
are crushed when the parents try to incubate them• Banned in the United States in 1973 • Banned worldwide in 2006, except in African countries where
it is used to kill mosquito vectors of malaria
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Diazinon• Negative impacts on birds• Decreases the number of eggs laid• Decreases survival rates of eggs and hatchlings• Increases embryonic deformities
• One granule can kill five house sparrows • Banned from use on farms and golf courses in 1988• Still widely used as home pest control
• 2001 estimates show that six million pounds are applied annually
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Herbicides• Most commonly used pesticides on farms• Direct effects• Paraquat: causes abnormal embryonic bird growth and reduces
rates of hatching in waterfowl eggs• Indirect effects• Destroys habitat and food sources
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Solutions - Pesticides• Ground application • Use most effective pesticide that is least detrimental to
wildlife• Microbial insecticides• Bacteria, viruses, and fungi that selectively attack a single species
or group of target insects• Do not harm mammals, birds, or fish
• Crop pest parasites and predators• Leave some areas untreated• Drainages, bottomlands• Field borders, fencerows, ditch banks
• Cover granules completely with soil• Develop more pest resistant crops
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Run off• Chemicals from pesticides and nutrients from fertilizers build
up in the soil• Soil erosion deposits nutrients into aquatic ecosystems• Sedimentation• Build up of suspended soil particles• Direct affects
• Suppresses plant development• Limits sight-feeding fishes’ ability to
find food• Clogs fishes’ gills and limits oxygen
intake• Smothers eggs and larvae
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Eutrophication• Excess nitrogen and phosphorous create low
oxygen conditions in aquatic ecosystems• Increases plant and animal biomass but decreases diversity
and changes the dominant biota • Algal blooms• Block sunlight from reaching aquatic plants
• Destroys habitat for fish and depletes food for waterfowl • Dead blooms sink to the bottom and are consumed by bacteria
• Bacteria use large amounts of dissolved oxygen when multiplying
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Dead Zones• Aquatic areas of unlimited algae growth and
<2 ppm of dissolved oxygen• Gulf of Mexico• 6000 – 7000 square miles• Caused primarily by runoff from the Mississippi
River Valley• Gulf of California• Yaqui Valley irrigations are followed by
large blooms of red and brown tides• 19 – 223 square miles• Causes paralytic shellfish disease
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Solutions – Runoff• Use fewer fertilizers• Decrease the rate of application• Animal waste control or conversion into fuel for electricity and
heating• Limit the amounts of nutrients, organic matter, and harmful
chemicals in waste from manufacturing facilities
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Deforestation• Primary cause is agriculture• Destroys habitat and food sources• Increases competition for limited resources• Increases risk of extinction
• Endemic species• Populations that cannot adapt
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Solutions – Deforestation • Stop clear-cutting• Replace trees that are cut down• Governmental regulations
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Species that Benefit from Farming• Traditional farming practices in developing countries create
grassland habitats for threatened birds
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Organic Farming• No chemical pesticides• Hedgerows and ditches provide habitat for natural predators
• No artificial fertilizers• Strictly manure
• Antibiotics only given to livestock as needed• Crop rotation• Mixed farming• Spring sowing
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Pros• Known to increase
biodiversity on the farm• 2010 University of
Leeds study: 12.4% increase• 2012 University of
Oxford study: 30% increase
• Lower crop yields• 2010 University of Leeds
study: 55% decrease• 2012 McGill University
and University of Minnesota study: 25% decrease overall, 13% decrease with improved management techniques• Cereal crops have worst
yield decrease• Legumes, soybeans, and
fruits yield almost as much as conventional farming
and Cons
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Shade-grown coffee• Introduced by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center in 1996• Coffee grows in the shade of native trees maintained by the
farmer
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Pros• Creates suitable
habitat for many avian species• Natural pest control by
birds, bats, and predatory insects• Higher soil quality than
sun-grown coffee
• Lower yield than sun-grown coffee• Farmers profit from
fruit, firewood, medicinal herbs, building materials, and ecotourism
and Cons