humanity relies heavily on insects to pollinate crops that feed the world that have pesticides intensive farming and climate change rule to record damage on that crucial ecosystem some ecologists of will that at least 40 percent of insect species could be facing extinction a potentially catastrophic consequences for life on earth 2 and a journalist eric campbell has been to find out why. live in the same spot definition get over. a long forests over fields and if they're lucky through it stick to. the deck and people have had a nagging sense that even 6 hours trapped well. now some scientists suggest then numbers are crashing we could even be facing insect to get. some how bad is it and can it be stopped. i'm in germany on the trial of disappearing acts. now one of the reasons for the concerns has been dubbed the wind shield phenomenon people remembering that when they were kids and went on family drives across europe or north america the windshield will be literally covered with insects and these days it seems you can drive for days and never have to clean it but how do you prove it well that would have been people spending literally decades collecting and counting millions of insects to see if they really had been wrong and who would have been more become a shouldn't to do that. thank goodness but they sure. i'm hitting the small northwest town of crayfish near the dutch border it's home to a stockpiling discovery that's run alarm bells around the world and. the local entomology society has been quietly collecting and sorting insects for more than a century. to his where you keep all your insane. yes this is part of the room. where the collections of thoughts. martin song started hanging out when he was 13 he's now a ph d. in entomology how many in 60 you think you have it all together in this building we don't know as of the other numbers but purposing kong was and millions 80000000 insects in this building yeah. in 1989 he and some young colleagues decided to do something extraordinary. they began collecting flying insects from 63 nature reserves and tracked the changing numbers for 30 years. down the cord extend on the 05. 0. and on the horizon but. it's taken extraordinary perseverance and obsessive attention to detail. that's a tough dozens to follow. they've placed identical traps in identical locations often to the insects fly up to the top of the tents and get caught in a plug. in that. there's not a lot of as a positive to help them point out that this does funkenstein he's a father look at together the higher the price type yeah and he got it on the. back so these are fine for. each sample was brought back drains sorted and weighed he needs actually the same way. and you know 2017 i was able to report it as stunning finding. in the course of 16900 days of standardized sampling flying insect numbers had crashed by 3 quarters. there was a lot of 75 percent during a timeline of 27 years that's shocking. and it shocking because our very existence depends on the healthy in the sick population they keep weights in check dispose that dead animals pollinate plants and feed birds and frogs and other animals right up the food chain the clans and biodiversity. serious thing and. people are just. so what's been killing so many insects the doctor ruled out changes to weather all vegetation. 6 and nature reserves are protected from land clearing and chemicals but they surrounded by family and the enemy territory but with huge stretches of monoculture absolutely no flowers and regular spray pesticides the farmland is inside of the daily flight activity of many of the species flying inside of these clubs so could the problem just be modern farming what do you suspect is a big reason for this. speculation is not his department. i do not suspect. to meet people who do suspect he suggested we drive across the border to the dutch city i mean. the city's research is it right blood university had also been noticing a big drop in wildlife numbers the crane felt study confirmed their worst feeds. all of a sudden we had a percent which is scientifically proven percentage of how much this whole bulk of insects was going that would have concern should be about the economy just hunts to croon has little doubt that farming is responsible. can have effects on the living conditions in the nature was a risk and we know for example that very low levels of insecticides can already destruct insect life. and you know these traces have been from spreading. since world war 2 pesticides are being used to kill organisms that are bad for crops like cockroaches grass on. one of their own movies is now threatening in 6 that it rocks like bees farmers need pollinators to grow apples onions melons broccoli celery well you must realize he said there are far the patterns of insects 4.8 percent of the wild plants pieces as well . a major part of the insects is being eaten by birds and by other animals being essential in the future so if we are losing all of that we are losing the sort of the ecological foundation of our. now some people have questioned the whole idea of an insect apocalypse because the study in credit just looked at some reserves in germany but it's also been going on across the border here in the netherlands and i'm about to meet some other cane entomologists who have been counting in 6 them all laid back in the crate filled crowd but their findings have been almost stunning. i'm looking for paw until hello paul you know i think that you will. be a guest in a very very much this is your crew pulled on dealing with these mates of retirees or hobby collectors who meet just one evening away again oh hang how i. act as i'm going to throw good yeah yeah excellent. but he knows that most of the malt he knows a lot about personally everything. their technique is simple but he set up a string. turn on the lights. collect the in 6 that turn up and send the results to run food university and it's all bad news all kinds of insects are going down the mulch about 60 percent by about 70 percent and. comparable. in clear shot to the same so there's a test for that just kind of discussion you have testified yes sometimes things you hear that's happening he also and it show a study i show a study does afternoon in denmark of a study published with a bit of wind screens and counting hits in 20 years and also do you have also the same think you so it's true that when screens there are less bugs hitting when yes but. the problem is we don't really know what's happening in the rest of the. union speech so yeah there you go figure. they think count against 6 for more than 20 years but there just aren't enough projects like this internationally. the world has grown rather complacent since the last warning of its sec to get nearly 60 years ago. and $962.00 wildlife biologist break chill constant wrote a global bestseller cold simon spring less for doing these chemicals only better control we are so cool headed for disaster. she exposed how the pesticide was wiping out insect populations and contamination food. and she envisions silent springs these sprays destine aerosols are now applied almost universally to farms gardens forests and homes nonselective chemicals that have the power to still a song a bird and the leaping and facial scream. rachel carson's work lead to would be global ban on extra sounds. but since then other potent chemicals have taken its place. regulate his speech some of the new ones have run away. if there is a smoking gun from suspect it's a popular type of exercise called the make it a now in $28.00 days maybe you've gotten the needs overall ban across europe but the trumpet ministration has overturned the ban to ensure they continue to use in the u.s. some time just to leave that's bad news but they. these new mics are usually broken quite readily when they're out in the air when they're in the store or in the store water or in the 7th ward they can hang around for a long time. bromley a very local intrusions with these locals intrusions really affect insect law so it's a very special. yes extremely poisonous for yourselves and there's more and more of this there they are really affecting the target insecticons. so what can be done to prevent a silent spring i'm heading down to southern germany to see how an entire state is mobilizing. the very 1st usually thought of as the heartland of conservatism and that includes conserving nature it's part of the culture to protect the forests and look after wildlife in the city over the coming of. this is mr brace because i guess he's. is actually. dr norbert schaefer is president of the bavarian birch society he and his colleagues here on the idea of a petition demanding in 6 protection and they focused on everyone's favorite insect cooling make campaign save the baby is of course not only about 20 pounds in fake honey bees. my nepali is about insects as a whole but it was a dog as a whole the idea captured the public's imagination the streets of the capital munich was soon packed with campaigners dressed as b.s. braving freezing weather to encourage some of the various $9000000.00 voters to come out and sign. that what happened next took everyone by surprise because 1750000 people signed it it was the most popular petition here ever and the government soon promised to sign it into law environmentalists could hardly believe their success farmers could hardly believe what was about to hit them. the new laws call for 30 percent of the state to be put aside is ecological and almost a 3rd of farm land to become getting it is a target no one will be forced to go organic farmers cannot be forced to do things the government has to deliver most of the the legislation is really aimed at the government the government is the deliver certain toll it's in all the government to support offers on the table so going 30 percent organic is a massive change isn't it but hope so i hope it will change our landscape it is a massive change but it is doable there's no doubt in other lender in germany they're talking about 50 percent organic now so it is doable we know this it is affordable it's good for our environment and it's good for people. away from unique farmers aren't so sanguine maybe like france later that fear they'll be lumbered with the cost of going to any. we caught up with him if he was spraying his wheat fields with nitrogen fertilizer. he insists chemicals are essential to grow productive crops yeah i'm good on them and these this is in the blood seed muncie disease. post here you can kind it months it did see. man and in. grants and treatment of going to floods in his middle those months. discipline see the next in oct walking should this movie and from on a presidency to nod off on some transmitter but why. yah maybe it's not really that if we're far from home. and even only plants until it's. you know middle of a really you are aren't really i didn't mention of that yeti when me to answer should smith will only do. this is moving you see. does it make sense to any in. france leader says it greenies in the city really want to help to change farming 30 have to do more than sign petitions they need to open their wallets. he started a program for people to sponsor the friendly crops and get a name on a stick for it this is interesting farmers like france are now leasing their lair and for people in the city to sponsor growing flowers to help babies and other insects rather than what about cut off an order of robin potatoes or something people have to pay or can pay farmers to grow flowers so instead of just signing a petition they actually give money as well ok a little today you're good. good your body. good. good. good start. none of these diseases that cashing in on the. german and dutch hardware store and now featuring the friendly flowers and tell. much more will be needed to help make a slave. story see right here is the flowers return created in the landscape and in the dutch border country professor to crudities team are also starting to tackle the problems of intensive land. with farmers to plant wildflowers. on the ages that they feel it's creating a network of bug friendly cardozo between the nature reserve allowing in 6 to avoid the dangers of farmland it's not going to make a major reserve of that size would make sounds like highways for highways yes exactly yeah we already know to croon says they're already see results not just for in 6 but for the birds and from that. it's so much of fighting you can really get it back quite rapidly you know in america hears it here you know you have to help a little bit but it's only partially it's this landscape that makes me optimistic about the changes taking it can make. some scientists of fun to get harder to muster optimism. across the channel with me in these counties david coulthard has been studying the craig field report with this man. he's professor of biology at sussex university and he feeds society e's headed for the silent spring that rachel carson warned off . it's like deja very you know we're going round in circles here is nuts and she saw what was happening all the time a guy and we banned a whole bunch of pesticides as a result but then we introduced new ones to replace them many of which then eventually we banned so we introduced even more including the name across roads and 20 years on into their use we're starting to realise that they too are harming the environment the whole system of having our way of farming which is entirely reliant on choking on bucket loads of chemicals is not sustainable we are going to wise insect life if we carry on this way. but he's not giving up yet he's back garden is a showcase of what individuals can do create eagle getting habitats for insects and living nature take its course be friendly butterfly friendly better nature friendly it isn't just about the news it's about everything you know birds and. everything else that makes up a kind of natural healthy ecosystem if you have you don't know that they're going to tidy and grow don't mow all the time you know grow lots of the right kinds of flowers if you bumble bees over here yeah so one of the reasons beans are struggling in the modern world is there are many flowers. modern farm land is pretty flower free and it's a really nice thing that you can do in your own garden lupin's brilliant lavenders lots of herbes things like margarine and time and sage rosemary they're all really good for the bees and cope with them as well so you know what's not to light. one thing you won't find is insecticide. just tired is my advice i've got a big garden but i somehow manage to produce lots of fruit and vege lots of pretty flowers and i don't use any pesticides i haven't done for years. and i'm not a lawyer and fronts recently banned pesticides for use in urban areas really completely the whole country so you know paris from now on. is still just as beautiful in the parks and everywhere not going to be overrun with dandelions and cockroaches i'm sure. some cities did this years ago toronto pesticides more than a decade ago in toronto still standing we could get rid of pesticides completely from our cities and it would be good for babies and butterflies and good for people to. an hour's drive away you could be a power plant and eco volunteers you showing the time to say did you get your say. you got a car. a little bike it's a moment just to keep cabins on the trail if danger studies just go brown banded bumpus hema said they often die so i'm keeping my fingers crossed for you they say if you have bass these guys of a city to see red. light pressure you say. their 100 ground is the dungeon it's national nature reserve on the straight up dover. for the past decade dr gammons is be monitoring b. for the bumblebee conservation trust. if you just take the u.k. alone we have one free of all be species actually classes where frightened we've had 2 species go extinct in the u.k. and this further 7 around for us and just all bumble base. it's not just the wildlife it's disappearing but the wild land they once depended on over the last 6070 years we've lost over 97 percent of all and. as well as counting days dr gammons is planting be friendly flowers and today there's an unexpected 5 but i really believe she was gone for good maybe so. this is one of the case where it's probably a species it's actually the 3rd rare spawn bobi it's called the brown band called up to your very beautiful this is a i think sorry one for you yes yes it's a really cry and i'm really pleased that we found the head it's been a very slow season there shit the weather hasn't been very consistent we had some quiet where 5 things to pay right and then it went very cold again and we were concerned how about my facts the emergence of many of all queens of this discovery gives you the creeps definitely and when we've been looking at our analysis of our data from last 10 years actually where we get senate fifes and where we've done actually pretty common of the wallflowers some of these rare species have doubled in number and this is one of the 1st experiments is actually showing that because we've had that continuation of 10 years who can i have to monitor them really well so it's lovely to say this species sounds like. we were a war the 1st challenge will be finding out how big the global problem is. the ground breaking studying cry filled showed the potential scale of an apocalypse europe. other continents are already starting to wake up to the changes. citizen scientists across europe are helping to build the gaps but it may take a global effort to voyage assignment spring creek. in russia many cuddy's migrant lack of. grazing. echoing and increasingly for many a global trend. labor force left to exploitation and xenophobia. people in power investigate. moscow's little caca stand. on al-jazeera. frank assessments the one thing about these bush fires is that it's really going to the. climate change informed opinions economy i think is actually what's keeping donald trump afloat right now critical debate sequel on those 2 school always on a. storm a shiny patronize an in-depth analysis of the day's headlines this is the beginning for you iraq of the new conscious and aware views about still against an ethnic sectarian kota inside story on al-jazeera a unique perspective on nigeria we have so much more we just don't know how to money this mosque that we have. through the eyes of the sun liberated african photographer to pollution in the delta or in join us live in still being us what it is to be. but 3 years on how has life changed. rewind ga sodhi on al-jazeera. the u.s. is always of interest to people around the world people pay attention to focus on now does it is very good to bring the news to the world from here. now it's the white house's turn president donald trump's legal team presents its 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