Do novel insecticides pose a threat to beneficial insects?

Abstract

Systemic insecticides, such as neonicotinoids, are a major contributor towards beneficial insect declines. This has led to bans and restrictions on neonicotinoid use globally, most noticeably in the European Union, where four commonly used neonicotinoids (imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, clothianidin and thiacloprid) are banned from outside agricultural use. While this might seem like a victory for conservation, restrictions on neonicotinoid use will only benefit insect populations if newly emerging insecticides do not have similar negative impacts on beneficial insects. Flupyradifurone and sulfoxaflor are two novel insecticides that have been registered for use globally, including within the European Union. These novel insecticides differ in their chemical class, but share the same mode of action as neonicotinoids, raising the question as to whether they have similar sub-lethal impacts on beneficial insects. Here, we conducted a systematic literature search of the potential sub-lethal impacts of these novel insecticides on beneficial insects, quantifying these effects with a meta-analysis. We demonstrate that both flupyradifurone and sulfoxaflor have significant sub-lethal impacts on beneficial insects at field-realistic levels of exposure. These results confirm that bans on neonicotinoid use will only protect beneficial insects if paired with significant changes to the agrochemical regulatory process. A failure to modify the regulatory process will result in a continued decline of beneficial insects and the ecosystem services on which global food production relies.

The Effects of Exposure to Flupyradifurone on Survival, Development, and Foraging Activity of Honey Bees (Apis mellifera L.) under Field Conditions

“…Flupyradifurone (FPF) (Sivanto™) is a newly developed systemic insecticide as an alternative to neonicotinoids. Although it has been declared that FPF has a favorable safety profile for honey bees and other pollinators, a meta-analysis of systematic literature studies of potential sub-lethal effects of FPF has demonstrated that exposure to field-realistic levels of FPF exhibited significant sub-lethal impacts on honey bees [ 39 ]. This study investigated the effects of FPF on the development on larvae as well as foraging ability of foragers who consume the syrup during exposure.…”

Consequences of the neonicotinoid seed treatment ban on oilseed rape production – what can be learnt from the Swedish experience?

“…Seed treatments replacing neonicotinoids are currently entering the market in the EU 38 . In 2020 in Sweden, a limited quantity of winter oilseed rape was seed‐treated with the systemic insecticide flupyradifurone.…”

“…In 2020 in Sweden, a limited quantity of winter oilseed rape was seed‐treated with the systemic insecticide flupyradifurone. Negative effects of these new compounds on beneficial insects have, however, already been reported, 38 making their future regulatory status uncertain. Future strategies for crop protection against insect pests in oilseed rape in the EU should therefore be prepared for a situation in which insecticides will be limited in their availability 25 …”

RNAs on the Go: Extracellular Transfer in Insects with Promising Prospects for Pest Management

“…The classical approach of combatting agricultural insect pests is via non-selective conventional insecticides. However, their limited target species selectivity has serious disadvantages, including a detrimental impact on environment and human health [ 229 , 230 , 231 , 232 ]. In fact, these concerns are increasing and have led to a ban in some commonly used insecticides [ 233 , 234 , 235 ].…”