www射-国产免费一级-欧美福利-亚洲成人福利-成人一区在线观看-亚州成人

US EUROPE AFRICA ASIA 中文
China / Environment

Firefly enthusiast works to save delightful insects

By Liu Kun in Wuhan and Hou Liqiang in Beijing (China Daily) Updated: 2016-09-20 07:09

Population declines as degraded habitat, bright lights and commercial catches all take their toll

Many people enjoy watching fireflies during the summer, but that pleasant activity could become nothing more than a memory if measures are not taken to reverse a dramatic drop in the insect's population, according to experts.

The species is threatened in China, the result of environmental degradation and the flies being caught for profit.

Li Xueyan, an assistant research fellow at the China Academy of Sciences' Kunming Institute of Zoology, said fireflies are not officially listed as an endangered species in China yet, but the insect's population has seen a sharp decline.

Research on fireflies in China only began around 2002, and the country has a lack of data for comparison to illustrate the status of the species, Li said.

Research by Fu Xinhua, associate professor at Huazhong Agricultural University in Wuhan, Hubei province, who started the Firefly Conservation Research Center, said excessive deforestation and development of tourist attractions has destroyed large areas of natural habitat for fireflies. The center describes the insects as "endangered".

Climate change, light pollution, the use of chemical weed killers, and water and soil pollution are also to blame, a report based on his research showed.

Firefly enthusiast works to save delightful insects

A firefly is an environmental indicator organism whose natural habitat is a cool, dark place with clean water and high humidity. The number of fireflies in a particular area may indicate the quality of the surrounding environment.

Commercial catches are especially worrying, Fu said.

The insects are sold both online and offline in China, with at least 49 shops selling fireflies this year on Taobao, China's leading e-commerce website, an increase of 28.9 percent over last year.

Not all the fireflies sold come from the wild. There are a few artificial propagation centers in China, Fu said, noting that firefly propagation is a highly technical operation, with each firefly costing up to 20 yuan. That suggests that many fireflies sold commercially are not from that group. The price of a single firefly on Taobao is about 2 yuan ($0.30).

In a town in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province, Fu found locals selling the fireflies they catch to a propagation center at prices ranging from 0.3 yuan to 1 yuan. He said the varieties bought and sold didn't differ much from those sold on Taobao.

The zoology institute's Li added: "The cost of propagation is high and takes about half a year. The insects can only live up to a week," Li said. "Artificial propagation is not cost-effective."

"Insects usually have strong reproductive capacity. In the short term, commercial catches may not result in significant damage to the species, but that could change if the practice continues for years," Li said.

Meanwhile, an offline industry chain offers fireflies for sale to scenic areas and parks. Large numbers are purchased to be set free so that visitors can enjoy them.

Fu said he believes that efforts need to be made to raise public awareness about fireflies. The insects could be commercialized, he said, if the process were well planned.

Last year, with the cooperation of the Xianning city government in Hubei province, Fu created a firefly protection zone covering 22 square kilo-meters. In the zone, in addition to cleaning the river, Fu encourages farmers to grow rice without pesticides, fertilizers or weed killers. Light is also managed in the zone.

The efforts have paid off, with the number of fireflies there reaching 500,000 spread across 17 varieties. Fu is also helping a village in Changshu, Jiangsu province, with a firefly protection project.

But no matter what, the public interest should take priority over commercial development, he said.

"As a firefly enthusiast, I spend about six months per year investigating the insects. I will persist in my work, despite the challenges I face," he said. "I know the time I spend on them will pay off."

Highlights
Hot Topics

...
主站蜘蛛池模板: 成年女人免费毛片视频永久 | 亚洲综合一 | 高清一区二区三区免费 | 成人福利网站在线看视频 | 日本一区二区三区在线 视频观看免费 | 亚洲综合伦理一区 | 香蕉久久久久 | 中文字幕在线观看一区 | 久久九九久精品国产 | 亚州人成网在线播放 | 精品三级国产一区二区三区四区 | 美女国产福利视频 | 精品一区二区在线欧美日韩 | 精品国产三级a | 久久青草国产手机看片福利盒子 | 暖暖免费高清日本一区二区三区 | 久色视频在线观看 | 在线成人天天鲁夜啪视频 | 国产一级毛片外aaaa | 成人免费毛片网站 | 精品视频久久久久 | 国产精品一级视频 | 欧美大胆一级视频 | 99精品免费| 美国免费毛片 | 日韩欧美一区二区不卡看片 | 国产一级毛片国语版 | 亚洲综合国产一区二区三区 | 亚洲另类激情综合偷自拍 | 久久精品国产欧美成人 | 国内精品免费一区二区观看 | 99久久99久久精品免费看子 | 日韩国产片 | 国产色视频在线观看免费 | 女人张开腿让男人桶个爽 | 黄视频在线免费 | 国产91精选在线观看网站 | 视频一区在线 | 国产aaa女人十八毛片 | 久爱免费观看在线网站 | 国产精品一区二区三区免费 |