Europe faces 'biodiversity oblivion' after collapse in French birds, experts warn

Authors of report on bird declines say intensive farming and pesticides could turn Europe's farmland into a desert that ultimately imperils all humans

The "catastrophic" decline in French farmland birds signals a wider biodiversity crisis in Europe which ultimately imperils all humans, leading scientists have told the Guardian.

A dramatic fall in farmland birds such as skylarks, whitethroats and ortolan bunting in France was revealed by two studies this week, with the spread of neonicotinoid pesticides - and decimation of insect life - coming under particular scrutiny.