Honey Bees’ Behavior Is Impaired by Chronic Exposure to the Neonicotinoid Thiacloprid in the Field

Tison, Léa; Hahn, Marie-Luise; Holtz, Sophie; Rößner, Alexander; Greggers, Uwe; Bischoff, Gabriela; Menzel, Randolf

doi:10.1021/acs.est.6b02658

Cited by 156 publications

(125 citation statements)

References 58 publications

(118 reference statements)

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“…These concentrations respective to the LD 50 values for the active compounds are considerably higher than those for the abovementioned thiamethoxam, but these compounds do not by themselves represent acute danger to bees. It has been reported that sublethal doses of acetamiprid and thiacloprid can affect behavior, including learning and memory performance, in bees . Previous experiments tested sublethal doses of acetamiprid and thiacloprid; however, adverse effects were found at far higher doses than at the concentrations we found in our colonies.…”

Section: Resultscontrasting

confidence: 73%

tau‐Fluvalinate and other pesticide residues in honey bees before overwintering

Erban

Václavíková

Tomesova

et al. 2019

Pest Management Science

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BACKGROUND Pesticides have often been linked to honey bee colony losses, which occur mainly over winter. In this study, we investigated residues in nine colonies at a model agricultural research site during the period before wintering. Moreover, we applied the acaricide tau‐fluvalinate to the colonies via a strip formulation. The pesticide content was determined by UHPLC‐QqQ‐MS/MS in bees from brood comb initially collected in mid‐September immediately prior to the start of tau‐fluvalinate treatment and 30 later at the time of tau‐fluvalinate strip removal. RESULTS In addition to commonly analyzed pesticides, we detected two plant growth regulators, chlormequat and metazachlor, in the bee colonies. Whereas thiacloprid, chlormequat and acetamiprid decreased after 30 days and contributed considerably to differences between sample time points, other pesticides appeared to be rather stable. Interestingly, we identified diazinon, which has been banned in the European Union since 2007. The residues of methiocarb sulfoxide and imidacloprid‐urea in the absence of their parent compounds indicate historical environmental contamination that can be identified by the detection of residues in a bee colony. tau‐Fluvalinate was detected only after the 30‐day treatment at an average (± SD) concentration of 1.29 ± 1.93 ng/bee, ranging from 0.06 to 7.13 ng/bee. CONCLUSION The multidimensional behavior of pesticides in a bee colony was indicated. Although the research area is used for agriculture, the measured pesticide level was relatively low. The recorded concentrations of tau‐fluvalinate should not be dangerous to bees, as the values were ∼ 200–5000‐fold lower than the reported median lethal dose (LD50) values. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry

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Section: Resultscontrasting

confidence: 73%

tau‐Fluvalinate and other pesticide residues in honey bees before overwintering

Erban

Václavíková

Tomesova

et al. 2019

Pest Management Science

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“…Our flight mill setup showed control workers to fly a mean total distance of 1.8 km, which appears to sensibly conform to other estimates of bumblebee foraging ranges. Looking at the effects of chronic exposure would provide further insights, as bees in the wild would likely be exposed to treated or contaminated flowering plants throughout the season (Simon-Delso et al, 2015;Stanley, Gunning, & Stout, 2013;Tison et al, 2016). As bumblebees are central place foragers, foraging trips require not only reaching a resource, but also returning to the nest site after collection of food or other resources.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pesticide exposure affects flight dynamics and reduces flight endurance in bumblebees

Kenna

Cooley

Pretelli

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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The emergence of agricultural land use change creates a number of challenges that insect pollinators, such as eusocial bees, must overcome. Resultant fragmentation and loss of suitable foraging habitats, combined with pesticide exposure, may increase demands on foraging, specifically the ability to collect or reach sufficient resources under such stress. Understanding effects that pesticides have on flight performance is therefore vital if we are to assess colony success in these changing landscapes. Neonicotinoids are one of the most widely used classes of pesticide across the globe, and exposure to bees has been associated with reduced foraging efficiency and homing ability. One explanation for these effects could be that elements of flight are being affected, but apart from a couple of studies on the honeybee (Apis mellifera), this has scarcely been tested. Here, we used flight mills to investigate how exposure to a field realistic (10 ppb) acute dose of imidacloprid affected flight performance of a wild insect pollinator—the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris audax. Intriguingly, observations showed exposed workers flew at a significantly higher velocity over the first ¾ km of flight. This apparent hyperactivity, however, may have a cost because exposed workers showed reduced flight distance and duration to around a third of what control workers were capable of achieving. Given that bumblebees are central place foragers, impairment to flight endurance could translate to a decline in potential forage area, decreasing the abundance, diversity, and nutritional quality of available food, while potentially diminishing pollination service capabilities.

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“…1a). However, this increase in flight duration and distance is likely not beneficial because, at similar doses, TMX and other neonicotinoids cause flight disorientation 20, 26, 34 . Bees that fly more erratically for greater distances may thereby decrease their probability of returning home.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tison et al . 34 showed decreased honey bee foraging after chronic exposure to the neonicotinoid thiacloprid (4.5 ppm). Based upon our results, we likewise predict that bees foraging on neonicotinoid-treated fields for just one or two days will then fly more slowly and in a reduced area.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A common neonicotinoid pesticide, thiamethoxam, impairs honey bee flight ability

Tosi

Burgio

Nieh

2017

Sci Rep

147

127

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Pesticides can pose environmental risks, and a common neonicotinoid pesticide, thiamethoxam, decreases homing success in honey bees. Neonicotinoids can alter bee navigation, but we present the first evidence that neonicotinoid exposure alone can impair the physical ability of bees to fly. We tested the effects of acute or chronic exposure to thiamethoxam on the flight ability of foragers in flight mills. Within 1 h of consuming a single sublethal dose (1.34 ng/bee), foragers showed excitation and significantly increased flight duration (+78%) and distance (+72%). Chronic exposure significantly decreased flight duration (−54%), distance (−56%), and average velocity (−7%) after either one or two days of continuous exposure that resulted in bees ingesting field-relevant thiamethoxam doses of 1.96–2.90 ng/bee/day. These results provide the first demonstration that acute or chronic exposure to a neonicotinoid alone can significantly alter bee flight. Such exposure may impair foraging and homing, which are vital to normal colony function and ecosystem services.

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Honey Bees’ Behavior Is Impaired by Chronic Exposure to the Neonicotinoid Thiacloprid in the Field

Cited by 156 publications

References 58 publications

tau‐Fluvalinate and other pesticide residues in honey bees before overwintering

tau‐Fluvalinate and other pesticide residues in honey bees before overwintering

Pesticide exposure affects flight dynamics and reduces flight endurance in bumblebees

A common neonicotinoid pesticide, thiamethoxam, impairs honey bee flight ability

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