William Dunsmuir 
July 27, 1996 
William D. Dunsmuir Of Pennsauken, N.j., Died Saturday At Home.

Andrew Gorto 
July 25, 1996 
Andrew Frances Gorto, 77, Of Parrish Street, Dallas, Died Thursday In The 
Wilkes-barre General Hospital.

Sunday, July 28, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 





The birds and the bees, the bugs and the trees all in decline &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The interesting first page item in your July 22 issue concerning the
deplorable state of the honey bees and the apiarists that depend on them for
either a living or a hobby has brought to mind an observation that is very
obvious to any outdoor-oriented personThere is an obviously large reduction in
the general insect population -- bees, beetles, worms, caterpillars,
butterflies, house flies -- with an also observable decrease in insect-eating
animals such as swallows, fly catchers and bats. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; No food -- no diners. This is at least the local situation. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Speaking as a very senior former beekeeper located in abandoned farm
country now returned to wilderness, I am speaking with the authority of age
and with the general agreement of the few neighbors hereabouts. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the normal bug population of previous
years. I would be generous to rate the current population at 3 to 4. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 By the way, that also goes for the apparent decline in the deer, bear,
turkey, grouse, rabbit and squirrel populations, too, which would be 1 to 2 on
the same scale. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I have a pond next to my house and could feed my fish via an electronic bug
zapper hung over the water with millions of night flying insects. This year,
where are they? The bugs, I mean. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A short time ago I heard a remark on one of the morning television shows,
that the lawns in New Jersey had been abandoned to the mosquitoes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Up here, where are they? I haven't seen or heard one yet. New Jersey has
won the prize. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Here, gnats, deerflies, horseflies, house flies, black flies are normally
rampant -- not this year. So far even the Japanese beetles seem reduced by 80
or 90 percent. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Possibly I could be faulted by more cognizant people for saying that the
quantity of nesting birds in this area seems much less than normal, probably
because of the dearth of enough insects to keep them going. With next to no
blueberries (because of no bees) and no bugs, they moved on. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This winter was much worse than we even realized. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Under normal conditions, I doubt if the killer mites would have been a
damaging factor in the death of the bees already weakened by depleting honey
supplies. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 George J. Kronmiller &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Dushore &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The Birds And The Bees, The Bugs And The Trees All In Decline 
The Interesting First Page Item In Your July 22 Issue Concerning The 
Deplorable State Of The Honey Bees And The Apiarists That Depend On Them For 
Either A Living Or A Hobby Has Brought To Mind An Observation That Is Very 
Obvious To Any Outdoor-oriented Person.