Lost World

We were commenting the other day about how few insects we see these days.  We sure are living in different times to they were when we grew up.
Once upon a time it was not uncommon to see a multitude of insects flying around a street light.  That is not the case anymore.  Driving home the other night we looked and there were none.
They reckon be careful what you wish for because you may get it.  The environment is cleaner these days.  But it seems sterile.  Insects may have been a nuisance, but they provided food for the locals and seeing them was not the novelty it is now. It used to be driving around it was common to see insects on the windscreen.  The wipers had a duel use.  They were used when it rained, and they were used to rid the windscreen of insects that that tried to be in the same space at the same time as the car.
I probably took it too far.  I used to keep African Cichlids.  They love mosquito lave.  So I used to breed them and feed them to my fish.  I emptied all water sources when I heard inspectors were coming to our neighbourhood. 
We did a road trip out west recently and not once did we need the wipers to clear the windscreen of insects.   That would have not been the case once.  It was the further into the country a person got the more insects there would be to greet a person.  Not anymore.  Except for midges.  They seem to be immune.
We have even noticed it in our yard.  We are careful not to spray poison around in an attempt to provide a safe environment for wildlife.  We realize though that it is not necessarily the same for the neighbours.  Hence while birds and insects are safe to roam here, they do not need to travel far to be prone to poison.
Maybe Paradise Lost would be overstating it but it is a lost world and I for one think we are the poorer for it.