PART 1
Mineau & Whiteside (2013) examine various variables to forecast the number of savannah kinds that either decline or increase depending on the breeding birds survey that was conducted between 1980 and 2003. The paper primarily sought to examine the reasons for the decline in grassland birds population.
The experiment follows the procedure of assembly of data regarding the use of pesticides across states in the U.S. The study assembles data from the National Center for Food and Agriculture Policy (NCFAP) regarding the matrix that covers active ingredient combination of crops in the country. The data accumulated includes the percentage of acreage of plants treated using a specific type of ingredient. However, data concerning the one-time application of the active ingredient on the plant was not compiled. In another round of tests for research, the study employed the use of data from the U.S. Geological department of Survey regarding the trends in birds’ species. Observers volunteer to count all types of birds observed and seen within a 0.4-kilometer radius over a period of 3 minutes.
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The researchers might have used information about the loss of cropped pasture, studies in pesticide impact and predictors of decline in species to develop a testable hypothesis. Other essential pointers may have been statistics about the loss of possible pasture which may also point to the increase or the intensification of pasture use. Pesticide toxicity in birds is essentially considered a factor in the general decline of the bird species population.
The autonomous factor in the research was the trend in the bird population. The reliant variable was the use of various herbicides on plants that ultimately determined the increase or decline in the bird population. The difference between the control group and the rest of the population was a decline in bird population in areas where traces of toxic herbicides could be traced as opposed to an increase in population in the rest of areas where the same was absent. The researchers measured the change based on the average population of species present per square kilometer radius of 0.4 meters.
PART 2
| Observation | Specific agricultural practices can be linked to the average trends in bird populations in the United States, and this observation is contrary to that of the United Kingdom and other European nations. |
| Defining the Problem | Changes are evident and can hence be linked to changes in specific agricultural habitats, and these include aspects like pasture, cropland, and rangeland as well as specific trends in grassland and shrub species. |
| Forming a hypothesis | The more the use of certain pesticides in crops in certain areas, the more there is likely to be a diminished bird population in that area. The use of lethally toxic pesticides can be considered as one of the factors that lead to a decrease in populations in North America. |
| Testing hypothesis | The researcher assembled pesticide and bird population data from a number of sample states in the U.S. Sources of information for this research included organizations such as the National Center for Agricultural Statistics (NCAS), National Center for Food and Agriculture Policy (NCFAS), Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Additionally, the researchers developed both change and static measures of agricultural intensity. |
| Observing and recording results | The researchers employed the help of volunteers who counted and compiled data for birds within a radius of 0.4 kilometers and covered a distance of 39.4 kilometers. For the analysis of the entire country, the researchers used trends of bird information provided by the migratory bird division of the United States. |
| Drawing conclusions | From the results of the research, it is inaccurate to de-link the loss of habitat and that of the bird population. The study posits that researchers should consider aspects like pest regulators and the use of lethal pesticides as some of the causes of a decline in the bird population. |
| Reporting results | The use of toxic pesticides, as well as herbicides, ultimately leads to a decrease in the bird population, and therefore, institutions that seek to control the bird population must consider controlling the use of toxic chemicals on plants. |
Reference
Mineau, P., & Whiteside, M. (2013). Pesticide Acute Toxicity Is a Better Correlate of U.S. Grassland Bird Declines than Agricultural Intensification. PLoS ONE, 8 (2), e57457.
