Poem: "Apocalypses Now"
May. 15th, 2024 03:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis poem was written outside the regular prompt calls. It fills the "Rat" square in my 4-1-24 card for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Bingo fest. It has been sponsored by Anthony Barrette.
"Apocalypses Now"
There is not one apocalypse
but many, rolling their way up
the food chain in a trophic cascade.
The insects are disappearing from
windshields all over the world,
bug zappers hanging silent,
leaves pristine and unchewed.
The amphibians are falling prey
to diseases, but also habitat loss
and a lack of their food sources.
Birds too are vanishing from
trees and prairies and powerlines,
spring and fall migrations failing,
summer arriving without song.
The cacophony of life turns to
diminuendos and fade-outs.
It's as if a large part of
the biosphere has said,
"Screw this, I'm out of here!"
Of course, not every species
is threatened with extinction.
Most of the rats and mice
are doing just fine, thank you.
They thrive and throng in cities.
The box jellyfish and men'o'war
are basking in overwarm water
that leaves the fish gasping
and the corals bleaching.
Wily coyotes are expanding
their range -- and sometimes
their romantic options -- with
wolves largely out of the way.
Grasshoppers know exactly
how to handle an apocalypse:
they put on their leather jackets
and stage makeup, then go
on a road trip as locusts.
This is what it comes to in
the apocalypses now: rodents
and jellyfish, coyotes and locusts,
bashing out the late-night party
after everyone else has gone home.
* * *
Notes:
Trophic cascades can run top-down or bottom-up and feature events that ripple through a whole ecosystem.
The Insect Apocalypse Is Here
In the United States, scientists recently found the population of monarch butterflies fell by 90 percent in the last 20 years, a loss of 900 million individuals; the rusty-patched bumblebee, which once lived in 28 states, dropped by 87 percent over the same period.
[---8<---]
The German study found that, measured simply by weight, the overall abundance of flying insects in German nature reserves had decreased by 75 percent over just 27 years. If you looked at midsummer population peaks, the drop was 82 percent.
The Insect Effect: Insect Decline and the Future of Our Planet
Providing nutrition for wildlife: Insects are the primary menu item for many reptiles, birds and amphibians. If insect populations continue to decline, some food webs might collapse entirely.
Amphibian apocalypse is twice as bad as scientists thought
More than 500 frog and salamander species are suffering from a deadly fungal disease.
More than 2,000 species of amphibians are threatened by extinction
Habitat loss, climate change and disease are pushing more animals toward the brink.
America is having a bird apocalypse. Here’s what can be done before it’s too late.
North America’s birds are dying. Declared a man-made epidemic by a report in Science, approximately 100 bird species are recognized as endangered or threatened, with some estimates stating that about 30 percent of North America’s bird population has disappeared over the past half century. This amounts to 3 billion birds total.
The Insect Apocalypse Moves Up the Food Chain: American Bird Populations in Rapid Decline Due to Pesticide Use
Ongoing declines in bird population and diversity are being accelerated by the use of neonicotinoid insecticides, according to research published in Nature Sustainability earlier this month. The paper comes on the heels of a groundbreaking study released last year, finding that the United States has lost 3 billion birds since 1970, a roughly 30% decrease from that time. This new research adds further detail to losses that have occurred within the last decade, as farming patterns have shifted increasingly to the use of pesticide-coated seeds that poison.
diminuendo
di-min-yoo-EN-doe
[Italian]
A directive to a performer to smoothly decrease the volume of the specific passage of a composition. This can be designated with the word diminuendo at the beginning of the passage or with the "hairpin" symbol consisting of two horizontal lines that start apart at the left and come together to a point at the right. There is typically a dynamic mark at either end of the symbol indicating the desired volume before and after the diminuendo. This is often seen in its abbreviated forms dim. or dimin. This term is functionally the same as decrescendo and its abbreviation decresc.
fade-out
[ feyd-out ]SHOW IPA
noun
1. Movies, Television. a gradual decrease in the visibility of a scene.
2. Broadcasting, Recording. a gradual decrease in the volume of sound, especially of recorded or broadcast music, dialogue, or the like, usually ending in complete inaudibility.
Why Are Rodent Populations Increasing?
From Oregon to New York, mice and rats are increasing in number and in the likelihood that they will come in contact with humans.For example, local online reports at KEZI.com in Portland mention that Oregon has seen a 20% climb in the rodent population in just the last three years. Reform California's study has shown that California is experiencing a massive spike in its rodent population that is both measured by available data sets and observed by field-personnel. And three thousand miles away in New York City, The New York Times reports that, the infestation of rodents has expanded exponentially in recent years.
[---8<---]
The warmer and less harsh winters have made the rodent lifespan longer. Cold, harsh winters naturally keep the population of these rodents in check. With the moderation of winters the populations are allowed to grow unchecked.
[---8<---]
More and more cities and suburbs are seeing an increase of land development and construction. These previously untouched land parcels were home to rodents. With the disturbed Earth, rodents must find new homes and places to ride out the fall and winter months.
Jellyfish Apocalypse: Problems, Causes and Opportunities
Jellyfish prefer the warmer waters that are a result of global climate change (Richardson et al., 2009). With less competition for space and resources due to overfishing and habitat destruction, jellyfish have been able to bloom to record numbers (Gershwin, 2013). Around Kodiak, fishermen and beach goers
observed an increase in the number of jellyfish around the island during the summer of 2013. Also, ocean acidification and toxic chemicals introduced by humans displace other species that compete with jellyfish (Gershwin, 2013). Marine debris that accumulates in the ocean actually helps to disguise jellyfish but damages species like the leather back turtle that prey on the jellies (Richardson et al., 2009).
Coyote Distribution
Since the 1700s, coyotes have dramatically expanded their range across North America and now are found in an increasing number of cities in the United States and Canada. Coyotes were initially present at the founding of the Chicago site in the 18th century but disappeared during most of the 19th and 20th centuries. The recent expansion in distribution is unique as other large carnivore populations, such as wolves and bears, were extirpated from many portions of the United States, leading to the absence of large carnivores in most urban landscapes.
Serotonin turns shy locusts into cereal killers
Smells, sights and tickles as locusts gather lead to a surge in the neurotransmitter.
"Apocalypses Now"
There is not one apocalypse
but many, rolling their way up
the food chain in a trophic cascade.
The insects are disappearing from
windshields all over the world,
bug zappers hanging silent,
leaves pristine and unchewed.
The amphibians are falling prey
to diseases, but also habitat loss
and a lack of their food sources.
Birds too are vanishing from
trees and prairies and powerlines,
spring and fall migrations failing,
summer arriving without song.
The cacophony of life turns to
diminuendos and fade-outs.
It's as if a large part of
the biosphere has said,
"Screw this, I'm out of here!"
Of course, not every species
is threatened with extinction.
Most of the rats and mice
are doing just fine, thank you.
They thrive and throng in cities.
The box jellyfish and men'o'war
are basking in overwarm water
that leaves the fish gasping
and the corals bleaching.
Wily coyotes are expanding
their range -- and sometimes
their romantic options -- with
wolves largely out of the way.
Grasshoppers know exactly
how to handle an apocalypse:
they put on their leather jackets
and stage makeup, then go
on a road trip as locusts.
This is what it comes to in
the apocalypses now: rodents
and jellyfish, coyotes and locusts,
bashing out the late-night party
after everyone else has gone home.
* * *
Notes:
Trophic cascades can run top-down or bottom-up and feature events that ripple through a whole ecosystem.
The Insect Apocalypse Is Here
In the United States, scientists recently found the population of monarch butterflies fell by 90 percent in the last 20 years, a loss of 900 million individuals; the rusty-patched bumblebee, which once lived in 28 states, dropped by 87 percent over the same period.
[---8<---]
The German study found that, measured simply by weight, the overall abundance of flying insects in German nature reserves had decreased by 75 percent over just 27 years. If you looked at midsummer population peaks, the drop was 82 percent.
The Insect Effect: Insect Decline and the Future of Our Planet
Providing nutrition for wildlife: Insects are the primary menu item for many reptiles, birds and amphibians. If insect populations continue to decline, some food webs might collapse entirely.
Amphibian apocalypse is twice as bad as scientists thought
More than 500 frog and salamander species are suffering from a deadly fungal disease.
More than 2,000 species of amphibians are threatened by extinction
Habitat loss, climate change and disease are pushing more animals toward the brink.
America is having a bird apocalypse. Here’s what can be done before it’s too late.
North America’s birds are dying. Declared a man-made epidemic by a report in Science, approximately 100 bird species are recognized as endangered or threatened, with some estimates stating that about 30 percent of North America’s bird population has disappeared over the past half century. This amounts to 3 billion birds total.
The Insect Apocalypse Moves Up the Food Chain: American Bird Populations in Rapid Decline Due to Pesticide Use
Ongoing declines in bird population and diversity are being accelerated by the use of neonicotinoid insecticides, according to research published in Nature Sustainability earlier this month. The paper comes on the heels of a groundbreaking study released last year, finding that the United States has lost 3 billion birds since 1970, a roughly 30% decrease from that time. This new research adds further detail to losses that have occurred within the last decade, as farming patterns have shifted increasingly to the use of pesticide-coated seeds that poison.
diminuendo
di-min-yoo-EN-doe
[Italian]
A directive to a performer to smoothly decrease the volume of the specific passage of a composition. This can be designated with the word diminuendo at the beginning of the passage or with the "hairpin" symbol consisting of two horizontal lines that start apart at the left and come together to a point at the right. There is typically a dynamic mark at either end of the symbol indicating the desired volume before and after the diminuendo. This is often seen in its abbreviated forms dim. or dimin. This term is functionally the same as decrescendo and its abbreviation decresc.
fade-out
[ feyd-out ]SHOW IPA
noun
1. Movies, Television. a gradual decrease in the visibility of a scene.
2. Broadcasting, Recording. a gradual decrease in the volume of sound, especially of recorded or broadcast music, dialogue, or the like, usually ending in complete inaudibility.
Why Are Rodent Populations Increasing?
From Oregon to New York, mice and rats are increasing in number and in the likelihood that they will come in contact with humans.For example, local online reports at KEZI.com in Portland mention that Oregon has seen a 20% climb in the rodent population in just the last three years. Reform California's study has shown that California is experiencing a massive spike in its rodent population that is both measured by available data sets and observed by field-personnel. And three thousand miles away in New York City, The New York Times reports that, the infestation of rodents has expanded exponentially in recent years.
[---8<---]
The warmer and less harsh winters have made the rodent lifespan longer. Cold, harsh winters naturally keep the population of these rodents in check. With the moderation of winters the populations are allowed to grow unchecked.
[---8<---]
More and more cities and suburbs are seeing an increase of land development and construction. These previously untouched land parcels were home to rodents. With the disturbed Earth, rodents must find new homes and places to ride out the fall and winter months.
Jellyfish Apocalypse: Problems, Causes and Opportunities
Jellyfish prefer the warmer waters that are a result of global climate change (Richardson et al., 2009). With less competition for space and resources due to overfishing and habitat destruction, jellyfish have been able to bloom to record numbers (Gershwin, 2013). Around Kodiak, fishermen and beach goers
observed an increase in the number of jellyfish around the island during the summer of 2013. Also, ocean acidification and toxic chemicals introduced by humans displace other species that compete with jellyfish (Gershwin, 2013). Marine debris that accumulates in the ocean actually helps to disguise jellyfish but damages species like the leather back turtle that prey on the jellies (Richardson et al., 2009).
Coyote Distribution
Since the 1700s, coyotes have dramatically expanded their range across North America and now are found in an increasing number of cities in the United States and Canada. Coyotes were initially present at the founding of the Chicago site in the 18th century but disappeared during most of the 19th and 20th centuries. The recent expansion in distribution is unique as other large carnivore populations, such as wolves and bears, were extirpated from many portions of the United States, leading to the absence of large carnivores in most urban landscapes.
Serotonin turns shy locusts into cereal killers
Smells, sights and tickles as locusts gather lead to a surge in the neurotransmitter.
