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One of the top entomologists within the U.S. Department of Agriculture is fighting a suspension for publishing research about adverse effects on monarch butterflies from widely-used neonicotinoid insecticides (or "neonics"). He is also being punished for a travel paperwork irregularity for when he made an appearance before a panel of the National Academy of Sciences. His legal challenge is in the form of a whistleblower complaint filed on his behalf today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
Dr. Jonathan Lundgren is a Senior Research Entomologist and Lab Supervisor for the USDA Agriculture Research Service based in South Dakota. His cutting-edge research has drawn national attention and international recognition. He has worked for USDA for eleven years with great success—until recently.
On August 3, 2015, the USDA imposed a 14-day (reduced from 30 days) suspension on him in connection with two events:
--Publication of a manuscript by Dr. Lundgren on the non-target effects of clothianidin on monarch butterflies in the scientific peer-reviewed journal The Science of Nature; and
--An error in Dr. Lundgren's travel authorization for his invited presentation to a panel of the National Academy of Sciences, as well as to a USDA stakeholder group.
This is what suppression looks like.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 02 2015, @05:25PM
It seems some people have forgotten elementary school science.
Butterflies come from caterpillars. Caterpillars come from butterflies. They are kind of the same thing really. Caterpillars are critters that mostly eat plants, including crops. Crops are plants we care about. We use poison to kill critters that eat our crops.
Monarchs do not provide significant value in the ecosystem. We have a strange obsession with them because we tend to think they are pretty. They are crappy pollinators, they don't provide decent food for anything, and they aren't needed for milkweed control.
It would be unsurprising to discover that bees too are affected by these pesticides. That would actually matter. Bees have value, unlike butterflies. Predatory insects also have value. Want to show that pesticides cause harm? Pick a valuable insect, not a useless one.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Joe Desertrat on Monday November 02 2015, @05:55PM
Monarchs do not provide significant value in the ecosystem. We have a strange obsession with them because we tend to think they are pretty. They are crappy pollinators, they don't provide decent food for anything, and they aren't needed for milkweed control.
It would be unsurprising to discover that bees too are affected by these pesticides. That would actually matter. Bees have value, unlike butterflies. Predatory insects also have value. Want to show that pesticides cause harm? Pick a valuable insect, not a useless one.
If your definition of value is solely that of immediate economic benefit to humans, then maybe you have an argument. Monarchs are (were?) a highly visible indicator species, their decline is an alarm that something is wrong. Whatever that is, it is highly likely to affect other species throughout the food chain.