Very nice videos!!
I had a camera with that feature many years ago, but the resolution was terrible. I did however catch the kid next door using and abusing my pool while we were gone for the weekend.
The loss of insects here is beginning to freak me out - can't be good for whatever future lies ahead.
Terry
Ha ha Terry, that's funny...damn kids!
These gadgets have gotten a lot better yes.
I do film people as well doing stuff they aren't supposed to be doing...most places where i would like to record wildlife i can't because of theft or vandalism.
They are over rated anyway and miss most species even in a safe place.
They shouldn't be used exclusively when doing inventory like happens more and more these days.
Tracking and local knowledge provides far more information.
I'm no entomologist but i do notice a thing or two about insects as well of course.
Tthe difference between the city area and surrounding nature areas is striking, nothing left in the city at all where until recently it was always bees, moths, butterflies etc.
in the nature areas very very few remain as well, seen a butterfly or two and a few grasshoppers.
Bee/wasp/hornet species are gone it seems, i only see the fat bumblebee type.
I'm used to finding nests dug out by honey buzzard, badgers or other martens but not seen that either this year.
It's worth noting that the famous German study that reported 75% insect loss was done in a nature reserve, so it's worse elsewhere.
A similar Dutch report shortly after concluded a loss of 67%.
So called "invasive" plant such as wild cherry are being massively attacked and poisoned but entomologists have finally understood that they are a crucial species for at least 56 types of insect.
I could have told them that!
I foraged the cherries for years by shaking the trees out on a tarp and then leave it laying around for all the bugs to crawl away before packing up.
I won't be doing that this year, what little cherry trees remain are bone dry anyway.
This meddling with vegetation is a big contributor to insect loss i believe.
A species such as wild cherry is actually not a new invasive species, but one that was introduced and applauded in the 16th century...of course insects and other wildlife would have adapted to a great food source.
The use of poison has to be a major factor, in agriculture of course but that is pretty well known.
It's everywhere though, nature management organisations do it while believing they can recreate the vegetation of centuries ago amidst a climate crisis.
So areas are logged, poisoned, replanted with beech or similar trees that really don't have much chance while the food chain is interrupted more and more.
When the fences are removed and i have a look, i see voles and mice with no flight response, literally trying to crawl on my shoes and falling over dead...small wonder we lose the insects too.
People themselves poison everything, hunters do as well, schools, offices...all poisoning and adding more concrete of course.
People are asked to report "invasive" plants in their backyard...city will come and poison it for you!
Never mind resistance developing, public health, climate adaptation...urbanization, industrialization first.
What i did find in pretty astonishing numbers are the wood ant nests which were officially down to a single nest.
I don't take that as a sign of their success either though, just a lack of fieldwork.
Nobody here but me and one or two others still doing fieldwork.
One guy studying fungi, another studying bats...that's about it.
Both reporting severe loss as well.
And my research is paralyzed by the heat and allergies...just hiding in my house at the moment.
The entire ecosystem is probably going down just as the insects are.