#declining

[stoicmike]

In an aging society, such as ours, youth is a shrinking minority declining in wealth and influence over politics. -- Michael Lipsey

[kiefbowl]

I'm sorry if I'm such a lil bunch but I would rather be left alone than have people constantly try to anticipate my needs which is unfortunately a thing women are expected to do so I feel like I am constantly disappointing both men and women by being, like, incredible self-sufficient and a little annoyed all the time. I will ask when I need something, and the reason I don't ask is because I got it.

[enyementv]

The Prime Minister convenes a government meeting to address challenges of declining international funding and the Houthi terrorist designation.

On Sunday, Dr. Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, the Prime Minister of Yemen, convened a government meeting in the temporary capital of Aden. The meeting focused on the pressing issue of declining international funding across various sectors and outlined necessary steps to address this challenge in collaboration with Yemen’s international partners, including donor countries and organizations. Discussion on…

[fuddlyduddly]

I love when trans people look back on their earlier art, its always so interesting

[amtechhive]

John Gruber Reacts to Apple Declining His Interview After His Criticism

Every year between 2015 and 2024, at least one Apple executive agreed to be interviewed by Daring Fireball‘s John Gruber for a special WWDC episode of his podcast, The Talk Show. Last year, for example, Apple’s software engineering chief Craig Federighi, marketing chief Greg Joswiak, and top AI researcher John Giannandrea joined Gruber on stage at the California Theatre in San Jose to discuss…

[alunah-lalunah]

The paradox?

The most “spiritual” or “enlightened” lives, those that claim to renounce ego and performance are often the most calorically efficient and system-serving:

Meditate all day

Eat rice

Don’t challenge the world

Call it awakening.

But that’s not transcendence. That’s just ego’s most economic algorithm.

It’s the lazy math of survival, wrapped in robes.

[nsemkekanews]

When safe gets softer: Declining T-bill yields and search for alternatives - Nsemkeka

When safe gets softer: Declining T-bill yields and search for alternatives – Nsemkeka Government of Ghana Treasury yields have declined significantly in 2025 due to a coordinated fiscal strategy focused on reducing borrowing costs through disciplined spending and improved fiscal governance. In response to sustained investor demand for T-bills, the government introduced interest-saving measures…

[xtruss]

Experts Say a "Concerning" Number of Fireflies are Threatened with Extinction. Above, Fireflies Light-up the Sky in Upstate New York. Composite Photograph By Peter Mayney

Will We Still See Fireflies This Summer?

Scientists Suspect Many Species are in Decline—But There are Still Unanswered Questions and a Lot of Hope. Here's When and Where You Can Still Spot Them.

— By Gennaro Tomma | April 15, 2025

Raphaël De Cock was 9 years old the day he caught his first firefly, the glowing insect he’d read about with great interest in his grandfather’s nature books. While exploring the Belgian countryside, he lifted a stone and found a treasure: the larvae of a common glow-worm, a firefly species widespread in Europe, Africa, and Asia.

While running back to his grandparents’ house with the critter, he tripped and lost it in the grass. The insect was gone. But days later, while taking a walk on a humid summer night, De Cock and his grandmother returned to the spot where he lost the firefly and were greeted by a breathtaking sight: Hundreds of little lights were re-creating a starry sky on earth.

Thousands of fireflies take flight on a moonlit night. Some firefly populations are declining globally, but scientists still lack the most basic information about many species. Composite Photograph By Peter Mayney

Yet if De Cock returns to this childhood spot in the countryside, something is missing. “There are no [fireflies] anymore,” he says. “They constructed houses and industries, and so they are gone.”

De Cock, now a firefly researcher who wrote his PhD thesis on larvae like the one he found as a child, knows that many people have nostalgic childhood memories of catching fireflies. Anecdotally, many of those people also report seeing fewer fireflies—or lightning bugs, as they’re called in some places—every summer. Experts say there’s scientific merit to that observation, as firefly species around the world are declining.

Left: Fireflies swarm a forest in upstate New York. Right: Scientists have identified key factors contributing to declining firefly populations, including light pollution and climate change. Composite Photographs By Peter Mayney

Most Fireflies are a Mystery to Scientists

There are more than 2,600 firefly species across all continents, except for Antarctica, yet scientists have assessed the conservation status of only 150 species (or fewer than 7 percent). Of those 150 firefly species, 20 percent are already threatened with extinction, which is a concerning number, says firefly scientist Wan Faridah Akmal Jusoh, co-chair at the IUCN Firefly Specialist Group.

Yet, while a few species are well-studied—and scientists know that some of them are declining globally—researchers still lack the most basic information about most fireflies, and new ones are still being discovered today. “We only know up to species name [for most fireflies],” says Jusoh. Oftentimes it’s only due to specimens that were collected in a museum. What most species eat, where and how they live, and, in some cases, whether they are extinct, remains a mystery.

This knowledge gap is a huge problem for conservation. “In order to be able to protect the fireflies, we need to build a 'profile' of the species to better inform policymakers,” says Jusoh. “We lack people actually studying their behavior, studying their ecology: What do they eat? Where can they be found?”

To fill this gap, scientists in the Firefly Specialist Group began studying just that. Their work officially began in 2018, and they’re monitoring fireflies globally, says Jusoh. “Currently, we're slowly building a species list and, at the same time, assessing their conservation status.”

Left: Fireflies crowd a field in upstate New York. They're particularly fond of places near streams or rivers. Composite Photographs By Peter Mayney Right: Fireflies illuminate the sky in rural Iowa. Photograph By Radim Schreiber, FireFlyExperience

What’s Threatening Fireflies?

While some species are more stable than others, scientists have identified key factors that are fueling fireflies’ decline, a trend that probably began a few decades ago. However, researchers admit that it’s hard to say when the decline actually started, due to the lack of historical data, though Southeast Asia and Europe have larger data sets than North America due to a decade or more of monitoring, says Candace Fallon, the firefly program lead at the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Still, scientists are aware that these insects experience different levels of threats, depending on location, according to Jusoh. Common problems include light pollution, habitat loss, pesticide overuse, and unsustainable tourism.

“Our night skies are just getting brighter every year,” says Fallon. She calls light pollution “a growing threat,” explaining that most fireflies “need dark nights in order to communicate.” Artificial light can impact courtship as well, and pesticides can harm fireflies at all life stages and decrease their food sources.

Climate change also plays a key role, as extended droughts make some areas inhabitable for fireflies, while rising sea levels and more severe storms may affect species inhabiting coastal areas, by flooding and submerging their habitat.

In fact, habitat decline is a key strategy in determining which species of fireflies are threatened, says Fallon. If a wild area where researchers know a firefly population used to live now has been urbanized, they can now assume that population is declining or gone.

Fireflies hover in the mountains over Yamagata, Japan. Light pollution from cities is one of the greatest threats to the insects' survival. Composite Photograph By Kazuaki Koseki

The Glimmers of Hope For Firefly Conservation

Even though threats against fireflies are growing, many experts are hopeful that we will continue to see them lighting up the night skies.

“There is always in the darkness a flash of hope,” says De Cock. “But I think we have to be quite fast.”

In the United States, firefly season tends to be from late spring to early summer, though researchers say it can vary due to species and location. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee is a particularly well-known viewing spot that’s so popular you must win a lottery to attend a viewing session in early June. However, fireflies are found across the U.S. and in Canada, particularly near ponds, streams, rivers, marshes, and lakes—but it may be as easy as looking in your backyard.

Synchronous fireflies (Photinus Carolinus) illuminate the forests of Watoga State Park, West Virginia, which were discovered in 2019 after efforts to achieve International Dark Sky status. Photograph By Haoxiang Yang, Getty Images

Speaking for European populations, De Cock says many appear beginning in June or early July, but that it wholly varies on region and species, as well as global warming.

To ensure that we keep seeing them, scientists around the world continue to plan efforts aimed at helping conservation. The Firefly Atlas, for instance, launched in 2022, studies species across the U.S. and Canada. The IUCN is working on global assessments in the U.S., Europe, and Southeast Asia.

But anyone can play a role in saving fireflies by giving them a comfortable habitat. You can re-create conditions in your backyard by leaving out woody debris, for example, or simply reducing light pollution.

“Compared to 30 years ago, we are on the right track,” says Jusoh. “I'm very hopeful about the future.”

[thelovebudllc]

Melanoma cases climb amid declining sunscreen use in Canada

Despite decades of public health messaging, Canadians are spending more time in the sun and using less sun protection – raising alarms among researchers as melanoma cases continue to climb. That trend is highlighted in a McGill University-led study that analyzed national survey data collected between 2011 and 2018 from over 77,000 people, representing a weighted sample of 21 million…

[gurutrends]

Lizzy Anjorin lashes out at Tope Alabi for Declining to Perform at her Birthday, saying, "I'm holier than you."

Lizzy Anjorin lashes out at Tope Alabi for Declining to Perform at her Birthday, saying, “I’m holier than you.” Controversial Nigerian actress, Lizzy Anjorin has claimed that she’s more holier than popular gospel musician, Tope Alabi. The actress stated this while reacting to the controversy over Tope Alabi’s refusal to perform at her birthday. GURUTRENDS reports that Tope Alabi, who was paid to…

[fagtainsparklez]

“it’s a good thing that the minecraft movie isn’t about the intense loneliness of minecraft’s world and finding growth and hope in a post-apocalyptic society because it’s for children” Have You Ever Spoken To A Child

[saul-tortellini]

[miss-62-missunderstood]

Trump Does the UNTHINKABLE at his FINAL SPEECH

[captain-price-unofficially]

[zman1175]

Why Nvidia Stock is Falling - Technical Analysis