Keep Our Wildlife Wild!

Written by: Amanda Burke, Wildlife Rehabilitator & Intern Coordinator

X-Ray of Patient# 1683’s right wing fracture

In September 2021, a Brown Pelican was admitted to Pelican Harbor with a fractured humerus bone in its right wing. Orthopedic surgery was performed where multiple pins were placed in cross sections across the bone to stabilize the fracture and enable the bones to fuse properly. In addition to the pins, an external fixator device was also placed at the site. This involves a piece of acrylic encased in a tube that is placed on the outside of the wing to keep the pins in place and limit rotation so the bone heals properly. This type of surgery is a huge undertaking for wounded animals, as the stress of going under anesthesia for long periods of time can cause adverse reactions. Thankfully, patient  #21-1683 made it through the surgery successfully. What followed was 6 months of hard work on the part of not just the rehab team but the pelican himself. Every day he received physical therapy and medications to aid in his healing. We had to ensure he would have a full range of motion in his wing so that he could fly, hunt for food, and most importantly, live and thrive on his own in the wild.

X-Ray of Patient# 1683’s external fixator device

In March 2022, 6 months after its initial intake, release day finally came for our pelican. He had completed his physical therapy and proved to us he could fly and hunt on his own despite a persistent but benign wing droop. This is the happiest day for our rehabilitation team because it’s the culmination of all our worry and hard work. Undoubtedly, it’s the best day for the animal too! He was released with another pelican on our property here in Miami, where they flew off together, and we considered it another successful release. 

However, over the next couple of months, we got numerous calls from people worried that the pelican was unable to fly due to his wing droop. After some time monitoring him and multiple visits to the jetty, it was determined that he was not thriving in the wild due to consistent human intervention and he was brought back to PHSS for further evaluation. We decided to relocate him to an area that would not have the amount of human interaction he had in his previous release area.

Patient# 1683 with injured right wing

 Then, we started getting calls about Facebook videos being posted of people interacting with him in various ways around the Haulover Jetty area–touching him, petting him, feeding him fish, and attempting to “help” him even though he was more than capable of taking care of himself. Despite numerous attempts of release at different locations, the pelican kept returning to the Haulover Jetty, where he had seemingly become irreversibly accustomed to being fed by humans. Because of this, he was deemed unreleasable by our veterinarians and had to be permanently placed at a sanctuary, where he will live out the rest of his life in captivity. 

Please remember when you see a wild animal, they are just that– wild. Always be sure to keep your distance, and never feed wildlife. In order to thrive and survive, they need to keep their wild instincts. When animals become habituated to humans, they no longer want to look for their own food and instead spend their time in heavily populated areas. In the case of pelicans specifically, when they start to see humans as a source of food, they end up getting hooked because they hang out in fishing areas. This results in various injuries and entanglement, sometimes ingesting the hooks themselves which can ultimately result in death. Additionally, people feed them food that isn’t meant for them which can get stuck in their throat or make its way to their stomach where it then destroys their intestinal tract because it is too big for what their bodies are supposed to eat.

The best way to be a friend to wild animals is to stay as far away as possible and let them live their lives without our influence. As always, refrain from feeding, holding, or petting wild animals, no matter how friendly they may seem. 

Got milk?...not so fast!

Written by: Carolina Labro, Wildlife Rehabilitator

We all know that milk is a critical component of nutrition for any wild baby mammal's healthy growth, development, and survival. It supplies essential fats, proteins, antibodies, vitamins, and minerals to the neonate during a very important part of its life. But did you know that there are two crucial aspects of milk when raising orphan babies? 

They are Components and Compositions. 

Milk has six major components: water, fat, protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. However, its composition differs widely from species to species. This difference is closely associated with an animal’s environment, diet, and life history, and is why it is so important never to attempt to bottle feed any orphaned wildlife you may find. 

Herbivorous species produce milk lower in fat and protein concentrations due to a diet based on plants and grass. Conversely, omnivorous species produce milk high in fat and protein as a result of animal matter contained in their diet. 

The only component that is equal in composition in all types of mammal milk is colostrum, or “the first milk” secreted by nursing mothers. Colostrum is extremely high in immunoglobulins (antibodies) and provides the newborn with immunity to fight gastrointestinal tract infections as it grows. 

During the course of lactation, the composition of a mammal’s milk will change drastically to meet the nutritional needs of each developmental stage. For example, a baby Grey Squirrel weighing 45 grams requires a formula with a high fat to low protein ratio. When the same Grey Squirrel reaches 75g, it now requires a formula low in protein and high in fat. Similarly, Virginia Opossums weighing less than 45g require a formula with a medium protein to high-fat ratio, but when they exceed 45g, they require a formula with low protein to medium fat levels.

Although there is no perfect substitute for natural milk, there are specially formulated wildlife milk substitutes based on the analysis of the species' natural milk.  When feeding an orphaned wild baby, it is important to know that the wrong formula will cause delayed growth in size, sparse fur, muscle weakness, bone abnormalities, lack of tooth development, and even death. This is due to their immature GI tract being unable to process milk with inappropriate compositions. Products that do not provide adequate nutrition for wildlife include cow’s milk, evaporated milk, human infant formula, plant-based milks, and any homemade recipe. 

Knowledge of the specific nutritional requirements of orphan wild babies is vital to support healthy growth and to increase the chance of releasing an animal that can survive in the wild. If you ever come across a wild baby mammal, be sure to bring it to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator as soon as possible!

Butterflies on a Budget - How to cultivate a native butterfly garden for next to free

Written by: Samantha Martinez, Environmental Educator

Not only are butterflies one of nature's most diverse, colorful, and elegant species, but they are also great pollinators. While not as effective as bees or wasps at diligently pollinating plants quickly one after another, butterflies take a more leisurely approach to pollination which helps these plants in a different but no less important way. Since butterflies don’t have responsibilities to a hive like bees, they can feel free to take their time drinking the nectar of different plants and wait a while, and travel quite a bit before landing on another one. This may seem inefficient, but pollen has been shown to stay fresh on the tongues and legs of butterflies longer than they would on other surfaces or in the air. Plus, the fact that butterflies travel far before landing on another flower means that the plants they pollinate will have a different DNA profile than the last plant they were on. Meaning that the plants they pollinate will be cross-pollinated and have a more diverse DNA profile, leading to an overall healthier plant population. 

That being said, how can we attract these prepossessing pollinators to our homes without introducing invasive plants or breaking the bank? Today we’ll go over some of the easiest, and cheapest ways to create a beautiful, eco-friendly butterfly garden. 

Make a Garden Bed 

Raised garden beds are often more productive than planting your plants straight in the ground since the soil is not as compacted and has better drainage. This may seem like something difficult and unattainable on certain budgets or with certain time restraints, but this can be a very easy and inexpensive process. Here are some materials that you can use to create your raised bed and where you can find them. 

1. Cinder Blocks make for great fencing for your garden. If you don’t already have some laying around your property or neighborhood, you can often find them for free on apps like Offer-Up where people are just looking to get them removed from their backyards. You can either stack the blocks to whatever height and width you want for your garden without any adhesive, or if you want to secure your cinderblocks to one another, you can find cheap outdoor cement on Amazon.

2. Bricks are another material that you can usually find for very cheap on Offer Up or by asking local construction sites if they have any materials similar that are being thrown away. Construction sites will usually be happy to let you take leftover materials as they have to pay for their  removal anyway. This is another material you may want to secure with the outdoor concrete mentioned above. 

3. Wood from pallets - We have all seen wooden pallets being thrown out on the side of the road. This material need not go to waste, though not the best quality wood this would absolutely work for a raised bed frame.  This technique may take more tools depending on the style of raised bed you would like. Many youtube videos and articles can be found on how to assemble this easily online, like this one here. 

Cinder Block Raised bed. Thank you to Bonnie's Plants for this photo 

Raised bed made from pallet wood. Thank you to 99pallets.com for this photo

Line Your Garden Bed

A lining for your garden bed is important to prevent plants you are not trying to grow from taking advantage of the bed you have created.

1. Newspapers can be a cheap or free option for your lining. Though it will eventually decompose you can prolong its use by layering quite a few papers at the bottom of your raised bed. Plus once it does decompose it will add carbon to your soil which will be beneficial for your plants. Though some may be worried about the inc getting into your soil, newspaper inc is made of soy and therefore will not negatively affect your soil or your plants. 

2. Cardboard is also a readily available material that can be used to line your garden bed. Though it will also decompose within 6 months you can prolong this by putting multiple layers of cardboard just like with the newspaper option. You can pretty much use any type of cardboard except for any with a waxy coating like those used for cereal boxes. This kind will leak toxins into the soil and eventually into your plants. 

3. Leaves are another great option, any leaves you can find to provide a thick layered covering. It may even take longer for these to biodegrade than cardboard, holding out for about 6 months to a year. Once they do decompose you will have added quite a bit of organic nutrients to your soil. 

4. Nothing - You can always decide to not use any covering for the base of your raised bed. You may have to watch out more vigilantly for stray plants but it is completely doable to keep up your raised garden without a base barrier. 

Soil 

Soil may be the one ingredient for your garden that you have to buy, since digging up a giant hole from your backyard may be inconvenient later on. Plus a lot of the soil in south florida unfortunately doesn’t harbor the nutrients needed to grow a healthy garden. Luckily, bags of soil can be found at essentially any hardware store or gardening center for, dare I say, dirt cheap.  

The Plants! 

Now off to the very exciting part, planting the plants in your garden! Below is a list of native plants, or plants with low invasion risk that can either be propagated from plants around South Florida or whose seeds can be collected from a few organizations down here and will be sure to attract some beautiful butterflies and other pollinators to your garden! 

1. Firespike - Firespike is a lovely, Florida native, addition to your garden that will help attract several species of butterflies and perhaps even hummingbirds! 

2. Firebush - This native plant will attract some butterflies and hummingbirds for its nectar. It will also produce some small berries that will be enjoyed by birds and small mammals in your neighborhood! 

3. Blue Porterweed - Yet another Florida native, this plant is a host plant for tropical buckeye butterflies but will attract other species of butterfly, as well as bees to your garden! 

4. Orange Milkweed ( Asclepias Tuberosa) - Milkweed is a well-known butterfly attractor and host plant. This species of milkweed is also a Florida native and will help attract butterflies, bees and other insects to your home! 

5. Passion Flower - This beautiful plant is known to attract honey bees, carpenter bees and  Gulf Fritillary butterflies! Like many of the other plants on this list it is also a beautiful flowering plant to be admired all on its own.

6. Bahama Cassia - This plant is known for attracting butterflies of the Sulfur species. It is used as a food source for both adult butterflies and larvae. 

There are many other Florida native, or low invasion risk plants you can use to enrich your butterfly garden. Many can be found in small nurseries for a very low cost or you can reach out to organizations such as The Miami Seeds Share and others for seed donations they have available. I hope this article has helped you find it more realistic to create a beautiful butterfly garden with plants that will help augment the habitat that is your yard for you and the creatures you share it with! Happy gardening everyone! 

A Home for the Fish and the Feathered

Written by: Samantha Martinez, Environmental Educator

Biscayne Bay is known for its beauty, calming atmosphere, and views of the islands and city weather that view is from a kayak or a yacht. People from all over the Miami area enjoy the recreational activities that the bay makes possible. Here at Pelican Harbor Seabird Station, we receive hundreds of wading and seabirds annually, more so than any other group of avians. This is in no small part due to the kind-hearted people who choose to bring in injured or ill wildlife they discover on their outings. Without the eyes and ears of these good samaritans, many of these animals would not make their way into care. 

An adult and a juvenile Magnificent Frigate Bird roosting on an Island in Biscayne Bay

Nevertheless, we cannot ignore the impact of  our proximity to Biscayne Bay. There are many ways in which our society unintentionally brings harm to our local environment, but luckily there are even more ways that we can make small changes in our lives to help repair it. For example, adopting safe fishing and boating practices, like casting with care and disposing of hook and line properly, helps to prevent wildlife injury and entanglement. If you ever do find a bird on the other side of your fishing line, you can always reel them in and contact Pelican Harbor Seabird Station to get them into care. You can also reduce chemical runoff by planting native plants in your yard and using natural herbicides. Additionally, you can reduce your plastic consumption, avoid littering, use reef-safe sunscreens and so much more! These small, seemingly insignificant actions, together, make such a big impact on our environment and with a little knowledge and a bit of motivation, Biscayne Bay can once again be the thriving, rich environment it is meant to be.

Each organism within the bay, from newly hatched crustaceans to the bottlenose dolphin, plays a role in which there is no understudy. So before we enjoy our weekend on the water, let us all take a moment to appreciate the tremendous importance of this ecosystem and what we can do to help preserve it and the animals, including us, who rely on it. 

Preserving our Urban Paradise

Written by: Samantha Martinez, Environmental Educator

Barn Owl 22-842

In Miami, we are constantly growing and upgrading our infrastructure as new homes, highways, and businesses are built daily to expand our urban paradise. This, on occasion, can come at the cost of the homes of our wild neighbors. This is what may have happened to patient 21-842, a juvenile Barn Owl. This owl was found on a construction site after a tree, believed to be harboring the bird's nest, was cut down. Unable to fly and with dry blood covering his feet and nares, the owl was brought into Pelican Harbor Seabird Station.  We see this all too often at PHSS, especially during the spring months as people prepare for hurricane season.

Once in care, our rehabbers noticed swelling and lameness in this patient's right leg, with x-rays confirming a midshaft fracture to the tarsometatarsus bone. The rehab team thoroughly cleaned the area and added a half splint with firm cast material to immobilize the young owl's leg during the healing process. This, coupled with supportive care, antibiotics, and pain medication, has this bird on the road to recovery. However, there is still a long way to go, and not all displaced fledglings are so lucky.

Wildlife rehabber, Carolina, renesting a displaced Eastern Screech Owl nestling.

We understand that tree trimming and construction are often unavoidable facts of urban life, especially considering the need to prevent damage from hurricanes. However, we recommend some simple ways to help avoid harm to wildlife when starting a building project or trimming trees for whatever reason. Such methods include doing an initial survey of the area to see if any wildlife is inhabiting it. You can check for droppings, nests, or nesting materials, and listen for animals in the immediate vicinity. If you find that an animal is nesting in a tree you plan to trim, we recommend leaving all branches supporting the nest as well as those protecting it from weather and predators until all babies have left the nest. Most birds will be done nesting by mid-July. Following these simple steps will help save countless nesting birds and mammals and prevent you from receiving costly fines associated with disturbing a federally protected nest. To learn more about protecting wildlife while trimming trees, feel free to reach out to us for a copy of our Animal Safety for Arborist sheet. 

The Vitamin B Guarantee

Why B Vitamins are Essential in the Treatment of Animals

Written By: Samantha Martinez, Environmental Educator

Here at Pelican Harbor Seabird Station every patient admitted gets an intake exam as soon as is deemed appropriate for each animal. An intake exam is the observation of the patient and the hands-on exam, as well as initial steps of diagnosing the issue and beginning treatment for the patients that come into our care. This includes physical examinations of the patient's body, obtaining a weight, administering anti-parasitic medication when appropriate, and subcutaneous fluids with vitamin B complex. We administer a complex of these vitamins to prevent any imbalance of a singular B vitamin since each is required for independent body functions. According to PHSS’s Rehabilitation Manager Yaritza Acosta, “Usually animals are coming in with some level of stress, debilitation, and dehydration, so we give them a boost of B vitamins on intake for overall health and cell function.”

According to the NWRA wildlife formulary, B vitamins can be very useful in increasing appetite and have been anecdotally shown to help with growth in poor-doer infants, specifically baby opossums. Vitamins B2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8 are important for skin quality and skin barrier function. Meaning that without them, the skin would not be able to properly keep in essential fluids and keep out unwanted chemicals and bacteria from the body. These vitamins are also important for numerous micro functions throughout the animal's body such as the formation of cell membranes, the growth of epidermal cells, cellular respiration, and taking part in metabolizing carbohydrates for energy.

Vitamin B12, also known as cobalin, is also very important for liver and pancreas function. Vitamin B12 along with B6 and B1 are also essential for the maintenance of a healthy nervous system which makes them very helpful in cases of CNS (Central Nervous System) trauma. Without an appropriate amount and diversity of these nutrients, animals may experience dysorexia, alopecia in mammals, non-pliability of the skin, and nervous system dysfunction. Thankfully, with the help of our community in the forms of both medical supplies and monetary donations, we are able to continue to provide these basic vitamins and minerals along with many other much-needed medications, food, and equipment. 

Sources

“The Importance of B Vitamins.” Veterinary Practice, 25 Aug. 2021

Kobeissy, Firas. “Autoantibodies in CNS Trauma and Neuropsychiatric Disorders.” Brain Neurotrauma: Molecular, Neuropsychological, and Rehabilitation Aspects., U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1 Jan. 1970 

MO;, Calderón-Ospina CA;Nava-Mesa. “B Vitamins in the Nervous System: Current Knowledge of the Biochemical Modes of Action and Synergies Of THIAMINE, Pyridoxine, And Cobalamin.” CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics, U.S. National Library of Medicine 

Shaffer, Dr. Catherine. “Vitamin b Deficiency.” News, 27 Feb. 2019

Wonderful Warblers

Written By: Sarah Stinson-Hurwitz, Wildlife Intake Associate

Fall migration is in full swing! Sweet little warblers are migrating all the way down to Central and South America for the winter after summering in the Eastern United States and Southern Canada. Here in South Florida, we are lucky enough to be a stopover migratory site and see a lot of these little fellas in the fall. 

We often get calls at the station when a finder sees a warbler, like the Cape May warbler shown on the left, on the ground not moving. A common first thought is that it needs help — it must be suffering from a broken wing or are unable to fly. If the warbler has a visible injury, your rehabilitation center should be contacted immediately. But oftentimes, the bird is just stunned from a collision with a window or another obstacle and needs a moment to recuperate. The best thing to do when you find a stunned warbler is to stand back and observe for about 20 minutes to see if they recover and fly away on their own. If not, it's time to take a photo and call us (or your nearest rehabilitation center) to determine next steps. 

Window collisions are the second deadliest human-related cause of bird injuries (cat attacks are the first). You can do your part to aid in their prevention by putting decals on your windows where collisions occur. The decals are made using the ultraviolet spectrum which is transparent to us humans but highly visible to birds. Collisions occur because birds are confused by the reflections of vegetation and sky they see in windows, and the decals upend this illusion. We also recommend placing feeders and bird baths either within three feet, or more than 30 feet, away from windows so that when birds take off they will not hit windows at dangerous speeds. If you are interested in acquiring decals, we have some available in our online store.  You can help make the world a safer place for warblers and all birds!

Why Passerines Aren’t Pets

The benefits of re-nesting songbirds 

Written By: Samantha Martinez, Environmental Educator

Humans have the amazing ability to empathize with their surroundings. To put themselves in the shoes of beings other than themselves. This is unequivocally a characteristic that we should nurture and be proud of. However; our own empathy that is meant to be used to help those around us can sometimes harm them when we are not fully aware of the effects of our actions. The most common situation that we experience like this at Pelican Harbor Seabird Station involves baby songbirds or mammals. Today we will dive deeper into the needs of baby passerines, also known as songbirds. And remember, always reach out to your local wildlife center if you find any wildlife that seems to need help

Nestling  Mockingbirds  Calling Out For Their Next Feeding From Mom & Dad 

From February to August Each year, parent songbirds will build a nest, incubate their eggs, and invest all of their energy into raising the next generation of their species. Inevitably they will run into a few roadblocks. For instance, a strong wind may knock all of their hard work completely out of the tree, babies and all. A  few may be stumbled on by humans who are more than willing to help. Now someone's first instinct may be to take the babies home and begin to feed them. This may seem like the most logical course of action but is actually not the best way we can help and has actually been coined “Bird-Napping”. In cases of fallen nests with birds that are too young to learn to fly, re-nesting would be the best option.

But what about older birds? Baby songbirds learn to fly from the ground up and can be found hopping on the ground as they build up their wing muscles until they are able to fly. In the case of baby birds learning to fly, it may look strange to us to see a bird on the ground. However, this is a completely natural process that every songbird must go through so it is important that we respect this process and leave the fledgling birds to complete their flying lessons. While their parents may not be easily visible, they are keeping an eye out for their little ones. 

Depending on their life stage, re-nesting or simply leaving them alone may be the right answer. Information on how to renest a baby bird and identify the life stage of said bird can be found here on the PHSS website. Two videos from our website will also be included at the end of this article.

Juvenile Northern Mockingbird Learning To Fly From the Ground Up

If you are still feeling iffy about the idea of leaving the baby birds, you should also be aware of the dangers you may unintentionally be imposing on these helpless younglings. Firstly, different species of songbirds each take up a specific niche in their environment when it comes to the foods they eat and baby songbirds can be extremely difficult to identify correctly. Feeding a baby bird something other than its natural diet can lead to digestion issues, growth stunting, a weakened immune system, or even death. Secondly, being raised by people can completely take away a bird's ability to behave normally in the wild and have the proper social skills to connect with other conspecifics (members of the same species) and may prevent them from breeding in the future. Though they are absolutely adorable and if raised by people can become quite friendly, wild birds or any wild animal for that matter should never be kept as a pet if it has the potential to have a full life in the wild since wild animals are biologically on every level different from domesticated animals and have much more complicated requirements to stay happy and healthy. 

All in all, good people from all walks of life stumble upon baby birds during nesting season and hear the call for help from these younglings. It is important to keep our empathy intact and do what we can but also be aware and informed of the best ways to help these animals before our good deed goes awry. Whether that be to put them in a strawberry basket with some leaves and re-home them in the closest tree or bush and wait for mom and dad to return or if the best thing is to just leave them be so they can grow into healthy well-adjusted birds. Either way, it is important to not let our first judgment and good intentions take away the right of every wild animal to be free. 

Found a baby bird? Here are some videos to help you identify the best course of action:

Comfy Cardinal Condo for Three

Written by: Sarah Stinson-Hurwitz, Wildlife Intake Associate

In late July, a worried citizen noticed a couple of cardinal nestlings in some tall grass. She took a look around to see if she saw the parents or a nest and she was able to locate the nest these babies fell from but their nest was too high for her to reach. She contained them and brought them into the station, and after a quick check-up, our wildlife rehabilitators determined they were perfectly healthy and renesting them would be the best next step!. 

Do you know what to do when you find healthy uninjured nestlings on the ground? If the nest is out of reach and their parents are in the area (we recommend waiting a few hours to give the parents a chance to return if you don’t initially see them) a renest is the next step! Renesting is always our preferred choice for uninjured nestlings because momma birds are the best qualified caretakers for their babies. Renesting entails making a new home for babies (with a small box: cardboard, plastic strawberry carton or anything with drainage) and attaching to the tree they came from or one nearby or if possible placing babies back there original nest. https://www.pelicanharbor.org/baby-bird-help

This is exactly what we did for our little cardinal friends. We snuggled them into a new studio apartment (with drainage of course) and sent them back with the finder to be placed securely in their home tree. The finder brought them back and ensured there was plenty of foliage overhead to protect them from the elements and that their new nest was stable. About 20 minutes after their placement, Momma cardinal heard her babies calls, settled into their new home, and provided a nice fresh breakfast.    

Finders are often worried momma bird will have trouble finding her babies after a renest, but just like humans, momma and baby alike have distinct calls (like our voices) and use them to recognize one another! If you ever find a wild animal that you think may need help, give us a call and we will guide you to determine the best course of action.

It Doesn't Stop with DDT

Written by: Samantha Martinez, Environmental Educator

“Out of sight, out of mind”. It is how we feel when we stuff our laundry under our beds and walk away from a stressful situation. However; it is not the philosophy we should take up when it comes to the effect of pesticides on the environment around us. Here at Pelican Harbor,  these effects often show up right at our doorstep, either in the form of malnourished nestlings or suspected pesticide poisoning cases in both young animals and adults. In these cases of animals brought in to us, we can begin treatment immediately to flush out these toxins from the animal’s system with fluids and vitamins. Once healed and released back into the wild, we have to hope that the patient doesn’t have another run-in with the number of ingestible poisons that can be found in urban areas such as Miami. 

You may remember or have heard of the disastrous effects that the pesticide DDT had on bird populations, most notably on the eggs of the Bald Eagle and the Brown Pelican, bringing both species to the brink of extinction. This synthetic chemical would not usually harm an adult bird outright but would affect the calcium metabolism in adult birds leading them to lay eggs that were not strong enough to withstand the weight of the parent incubating it. Though these effects were pertinent throughout the 1940s when DDT was first developed, it was not until 1972, two years after the establishment of the EPA and ten years after the release of multiple studies on the aftermath of the pesticide, that DDT was banned from use in the U.S. When we look at the commonly used pesticides today for both agriculture and personal gardening it is hard to say that we are not also ignoring the negative side effects of these pesticides on the wildlife around us. 

One of the most commonly used pesticides in home gardening in the US is Permethrin, a type of Pyrethroid. This is a family of synthetic pesticides meant to mimic and enhance the effect of the natural pesticides found in chrysanthemum flowers. This insecticide works by allowing sodium ions into the neural membrane of the victim in copious amounts, leading to depolarization and hyperactivity of the neuron. Eventually, after muscle spasm caused by this neural incapacitator, the victim will pass away. Pyrethroids have been thought to be an effective and safe insecticide due to their lack of toxicity when exposure is dermal or respiratory. Meaning, as long as you don’t mistake it for your margarita mix, it’s not going to have an obvious effect on your body. Most adult animals can process the chemical as long as it is not ingested orally or injected directly into the animal. However, this chemical can still be harmful to people. Pyrethroids are unaffected by secondary treatment in municipal waterways and therefore trace amounts can be found in most drinking water where the chemical is used. It has also been reported that young children with asthma or infants can have adverse effects from even minimal exposure. 

Though Pyrethroids are supposed to be a targeted insecticide it does still manage to have an effect on the animals other than the intended targets. For example, it has been shown time and time again that this toxin has a negative effect on our already dwindling bee population. The most susceptible classes of animals besides insects to this specific toxin are amphibians and plankton, which are all vital members of their food webs and most susceptible to chemical runoff in the water. Pyrethroids can also be very lethal to cats since their liver cannot process it as well as that of other mammals. Lastly, when it comes to our feathered friends, while this specific toxin is able to be expelled from their bodies quite quickly with minimal effect, it has been shown that the decrease in the insect population has led to more deaths in first-year insect-eating songbirds. 

It is not only our backyard pesticides that have a negative effect on the environment and we cannot solely or even heavily place blame on the individual gardener attempting to rid his home and yard of pests. Agricultural use of pesticides like neonicotinoids, a chemical closely related to nicotine, has continued to increase despite the overall decrease in pesticides themselves over the past two decades. Neonicotinoids, neonics for short, which are bred into the seeds of the crops, are used in 44% of farms in the U.S. This allows cheaper protection for crops such as soy, corn and canola but also has a severely adverse effect on the local environment since only 5% of the chemical is cultivated in the plant and the rest is lost to water runoff at the seed stage. Neonic then finds itself in local water sources, affecting animals from the bottom to the top of the food chain. 

Besides being aware of the crops we buy and the chemicals they may harbor, there is little we can do to affect the pesticide use of large agricultural based businesses. What we can do is take a look at our own yards and neighborhoods and choose to treat them with natural, less harmful pest preventions such as companion planting, using soaps and plant oils or introducing predators to your pests such as ladybugs. Whatever you choose to do for your home, it is important to keep in mind that when it comes to the dangers of pesticides, it did not stop with DDT. 

Sources:

Connected, Science, et al. “Organic Gardening and Alternatives to Pesticides.” Science Connected Magazine, 6 June 2021

“The Origins of EPA.” US EPA, 9 July 2021

“The Same Pesticides Linked to Bee Declines Might Also Threaten Birds.” Audubon, 14 May 2019

Wikipedia contributors. “Pyrethroid.” Wikipedia, 15 Apr. 2021

When animals lower on the food chain are affected by pollutants such as nenonics and pyrethroids, these easily make their way into affecting all animals in the food chain, including animals like this American black bear.

Home beekeepers lost many of their hives due to the use of neonics from local farms and individuals alike.

The white-crowned sparrow, whose population has suffered due to the use of neonics along its migratory routes.