Apis mellifera ligustica, Spinola 1806 as bioindicator for detecting environmental contamination: a preliminary study of heavy metal pollution in Trieste, Italy

Abstract

Honeybees have become important tools for the ecotoxicological assessment of soil, water and air metal contamination due to their extraordinary capacity to bioaccumulate toxic metals from the environment. The level of heavy metal pollution in the Trieste city was monitored using foraging bees of Apis mellifera ligustica from hives owned by beekeepers in two sites strategically located in the suburban industrial area and urban ones chosen as control. The metal concentration in foraging bees was determined by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. The chemical analysis has identified and quantified 11 trace elements accumulated in two different rank orders: Zn> Cu > Sr > Bi > Ni > Cr > Pb = Co > V > Cd > As in foraging bees from the suburban site and Zn > Cu > Sr > Cr > Ni > Bi > Co = V > Pb > As > Cd in bees from urban site. Data revealed concentrations of Cr and Cu significantly higher and concentration of Cd significantly lower in bees from urban sites. The spatial difference and magnitude order in heavy metal accumulation along the urban-suburban gradient are mainly related to the different anthropogenic activity within sampled sites and represent a risk for the human health of people living in the city. We discussed and compared results with the range of values reported in literature.

Pollutants and Their Interaction with Diseases of Social Hymenoptera

“…Pollution levels in pollen stores of bees were positively correlated with heavy metal pollution as well as the heavy metal content in the bodies of bees [46,71], ant workers or nest material [35,133], and wasps [36,80]. Correlative studies have shown that with increasing heavy metal pollution, the mortality of solitary [46,47] as well as social bees [64,210] increased, and that body size [35] and colony size decreased in ants [133].…”

“…In social insects and especially honeybees, the collection of fine particulate matter during foraging translates into an accumulation of xenobiotics in honey and beebread. Comparisons between apiaries have often shown higher levels of residues of pesticides, heavy metals, and other particulate matter in the bees themselves or honey in urbanized or industrialized areas in comparison to rural areas [32,66,70,210,219,220].…”

The essential roles of metal ions in insect homeostasis and physiology

“…There is a longstanding but fragmented literature on toxicology of metals in insects. Mining or industrial activities can produce remarkable levels of such elements in groundwater, and insects can be used as bioindicators for environmental pollution [81][82][83][84][85]. Caddis-fly larvae, with relatively slow growth over several years, are classic bioindicators, though it is now common to sample a 'basket' of insect species to provide a reliable index of water purity [82].…”

Biomonitoring of Atmospheric Aerosol with the use of Apis mellifera and Pleurozium schreberi

“…It is an important tool in ecotoxicology for assessing soil, water and air pollution with, among others, heavy metals, radioactive isotopes and pesticides [2]. The pollution accumulated in a bee's organism may indicate the level of environment pollution [3]. As pollinators and collectors of nectar and pollen, they play an important role in maintaining biodiversity and productivity of ecosystems.…”