Date: 6/17/26 7:52 am From: Chad Brack <cebrack77...> Subject: Re: Bird Fertility and Pesticides
Jerry,
I just posted about something similar on social media a couple days ago. I’ve been trying to get people to understand the effects of pesticides, herbicides, and obsessive mowing. Would you be okay with me sharing your email on social media (and giving you the credit)? It has a lot of good info that people need to be aware of.
Thanks for sending it out,
Chad
> On Jun 17, 2026, at 08:46, <jwdavis...> <jwdavis...> wrote:
>
> External Email
> My yard has 20 nest boxes for various species from Bluebirds, Chickadees, Titmice, Nuthatches to Owls. For decades I had four pairs of Bluebirds, two pairs each of Chickadees, Titmice, and White-breasted Nuthatches, and a pair of Eastern Screech Owls using these boxes. They had full clutches of 4 to 5 eggs with all hatching and multiple re-nesting successes each year. This year is typical of the nesting success since my neighbor started a lawn treatment service six years ago. Four Bluebird pairs nested, two with 5 eggs and two eggs hatched, one with four eggs and one hatched and one with five eggs and three hatched. There was only one Titmouse pair nesting, and it had four eggs with only two hatching. The Carolina Chickadees did not nest this year, nor did the Eastern Screech Owls.
> Lawn treatment services use a mix of insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, and fertilizer. Pesticides impact bird and human fertility. The impacts to adult birds are reduced fertility, eggshell thinning, impairing incubation and chick-rearing behavior, and causing hormonal disruption. The impacts to embryos and chicks are reduced hatchability and higher embryo mortality, wasting syndrome where young birds do not thrive, and skeletal abnormalities and impaired differentiation of the reproductive and nervous systems. Fungicides reduce growth by 10%, and higher mortality with 47% exposed chicks die after fledging, with a greater impact on females. This does not address the young birds killed in the nest nor die as fledgling by being fed pesticide treated insects and other invertebrates.
> Bird population level consequences are accumulated with sublethal and lethal effects. This is leading to lower breeding success, fewer fledglings, and population declines. In the US we have 50 million acres of treated lawns, an area equal to the size of Nebraska. Of the 880 million acres of farmlands, 328 million acres of croplands are treated with pesticides, along with 2.3 million acres of treated Golf Courses that use 2.1 billion gallons of water per day. Pesticide use amounts to 1 billion pounds of pesticides used in lawns, golf courses, forest management, schools, and public spaces, meaning their use extends far beyond yards and farms.
> Lawn treatments and other pesticides kill birds directly and indirectly. This has been contributing to our loss of 3 billion birds in North America since 1970. Lawn treatments that kill grubs are killing earthworms, insects and other invertebrates which are bird food. Those with the mindset and the needed status of manicured lawns could at least have the lawn service eliminate the insecticides, fungicides and other elements that are impacting bird fertility, reproduction and survival. A better solution is to go with native plants and eliminate lawn maintenance services altogether. People that care about birds should act and help others to become pesticide aware. We need to realize the impacts that pesticides are having on birds, and bird food on over 360 million acres. This is impacting the life and reproduction of birds and accelerating bird decline. You can help by changing your mindset and by educating others about how these practices are directly and indirectly killing our birds on multiple fronts. Every species of life on Earth is always just one generation away from extinction.
> Jerry Wayne Davis
> May 30, 2026
> Hot Springs, AR
