In 1962, biologist Rachel Carson(1907-1964) wrote "Silent Spring", a book about how plants and creatures in the vast natural world depended on one another and were being damaged by weed killer and bug spray. Her serious work encouraged the environmental movemenent to save the planet.
Thanks to Rachel, DDT is no longer for sale or used here in the US. Scientist had to come up with different methods of controlling mosquitoes and pests.
ReplyDeleteBecause of her, we still have song birds. When DDT was being used, the birds would feed on the pests that had ingested the DDT. It would then effect the eggs that birds would lay. The shells were too fragile and the baby birds couldn't develop properly and would die in the egg.
If you ever get the chance to look at a copy of her picture book "A Sense of Wonder", you might be able to understand why she cared so much about nature and preserving it. She aso wrote "Under the Sea Wind" about the tides and the oceans.