Hummingbirds like the red Cardinal flower (also called lobelia). Really like them. Butterflies also swarm to these flowers. Usually.
But not always. Since an immediate neighbor started using a mosquito service that uses high-volume pesticide applications of a synthetic pyrethroid (think of a leaf blower on steroids), there has been an absence of butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds in my garden. Other people also report this happening.
Even though the synthetic pyrethroids (e.g., Fendona) are not neonicotinoids, which we know kills bees - pyrethroids are also toxic to bees. Pyrethroids are broad-spectrum insecticides - that is, they kill a wide variety of insects indiscriminately. This totally destroys the biodiversity of species in the environment. We need bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other species!
But what are the pesticides doing to humans? Developing children? The developing fetus? Sick people? Everyone? Yes, there is accumulating evidence of health harms to humans, especially children and babies.