Wintering snow buntings as a monitoring tool for agricultural pesticides

在加拿大，玉米是仅次于小麦和油菜籽的第三大最有价值的作物；然而，仅安大略省和魁北克省**就占了产量的91.9%(statscan.gc.ca)。在这种作物类型中，无论地理位置如何，都会喷洒类似的杀虫剂和除草剂，分别控制害虫和竞争对手。直到最近，这些杀虫剂的效果还不得而知，但越来越多的证据表明，这些杀虫剂对鸟类有中等毒性。也有人提出，当鸟类长期接触时，这些有毒影响是累积的，即使是在与生物相关的小水平上。**Terre-Eau，Inc.是一家在魁北克Bas-Saint-Laurent和Gaspesie地区运营的企业，**与私人农民**合作，就可再生资源的利用和优化耕作方式**提供建议，以平衡生态需求。Terre-Eau认识到，由于不断增长的消费需求和气候变化的影响，玉米等重要作物的种植将继续向北迁移。因此，Terre-Eau的目标是收集目前杀虫剂对以这些农田为栖息地的鸟类的影响的数据，以便在咨询客户的同时纳入这些信息。**乐福博士的实验室研究了一种模式雀形目鸟类--雪雀(Plectrohenax Nivalis)，这种鸟类在冬季主要在这些类型的农业栖息地觅食玉米。此外，尽管该物种目前在全球范围内没有受到威胁，但最近的估计表明，在过去的40年里，加拿大部分地区的降雪量下降了60%以上。因此，对于我们的**工业合作伙伴(TEI)来说，这种物种可能是一个理想的模式物种，可以在其与已经或希望种植玉米的农民的咨询实践中包括在内。**在本项目中，我们将测试雪球组织中最常用的3-4种杀虫剂**在玉米**农业中。这些杀虫剂是阿特拉津、草甘膦、氯硫醚和吡虫啉。

In Canada, corn ranks as the third most valuable crop behind wheat and canola; however, Ontario and Québec**alone account for 91.9% of this production (statscan.gc.ca). Across this crop-type, regardless of geographic**location, similar insecticides and herbicides are sprayed to control pests and competitors, respectively. Until**recently, the effects of these pesticides were unknown, but mounting evidence suggests that there is moderate**toxicity in birds. It has also been suggested that these toxic effects are cumulative when birds are exposed**chronically, even at small biologically relevant levels.**Terre-Eau, inc. is a business operating in the Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspesie region of Quebec which works**with private farmers to advise them on both the utilization of renewable resources and the optimization of**farming practices to balance ecological needs. Terre-Eau recognizes that the farming of important crops, such**as corn, will continue migrating north, due to both increasing consumer demand and the effects of climate**change. As a result, Terre-Eau is aiming to gather data on the current effects of pesticides on birds that are**using these crop fields for habitat in order to include this information while consulting its clients.**Dr. Love's laboratory studies a model passerine species, the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis), that forages**mostly on corn within these types of agricultural habitats during the winter. Also, although the species is not**currently threatened globally, recent estimates suggest that snow buntings have declined by over 60% in some**parts of Canada over the last 40 years. Therefore, this species could represent an ideal model species for our**industrial partner (TEI) to include in its consultation practices with farmers already or expecting to grow corn.**In this project, we will therefore test snow bunting tissues for the 3-4 pesticides most commonly used in corn**agriculture. These pesticides are atrazine, glyphosate, chlothianidin, and imidacloprid.