There was a link on here recently to the 3 legends show on this channel. Therefore, I tuned in to listen to the same old drivel. However, I love their link 'We're not geordies'. A dose of reality for all the plakka mags in East Durham.
A pesticide is being blamed for killing around 50,000 bees found dead in a shopping centre car park in the US state of Oregon. They were discovered clustering under dozens of blooming European linden trees in Wilsonville, south-west of Portland. The state Department of Agriculture said that tests showed the deaths were "directly related to a pesticide application on linden trees" that was meant to control aphids. It is investigating whether the application of the pesticide Safari was against the law. Most of the dead insects were gold-and-black bumble bees, but honey bees and some ladybirds were also found. Safari is part of a family of pesticides called neonicotinoids that are considered acutely toxic to pollinators. Workers plan to wrap bee-proof netting around the trees in an attempt to prevent the deaths of more bees. Dan Hilburn, plant programmes director at the state Agriculture Department, visited the car park and confirmed "thousands of dead bees", adding: "I've never seen anything like that before". He went on: "Honey bees and bumble bees were arriving as we were there, and bees are still dying." Bees play a crucial role in pollinating berries, flowers and other plants. Mace Vaughan and Rich Hatfield collect samples (Pic: CBS) Conservationists Mace Vaughan and Rich Hatfield took samples from the scene to help identify the cause of the deaths. "When I was here on Monday, it was even more dramatic than it is today," Mr Hatfield told KOIN-TV. "There were bees raining out of trees." Mr Vaughan said European linden trees are often treated with insecticides because of the aphids that "rain down" nectar from the trees.
