Environ Toxicol Pharmacol
December 2024
The use of plant protection products (PPPs) is a major factor contributing to global insect decline. We here use the honeybee (Apis mellifera) as a model to study combined effects of the last neonicotinoid in the EU (acetamiprid) and different fungicides on live-long foraging flights using radio frequency identification. The mixture of the sterol-biosynthesis-inhibiting fungicide difenoconazole and the insecticide acetamiprid significantly reduced the number of foraging trips per day compared to the control and each PPP alone, while a mixture of the insecticide with the non-sterol-biosynthesis inhibiting fungicide boscalid/dimoxystrobin did not affect behaviour.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBumblebees are among the most important wild bees for pollination of crops and securing wildflower diversity. However, their abundance and diversity have been on a steady decrease in the last decades. One of the most important factors leading to their decline is the frequent use of plant protection products (PPPs) in agriculture, which spread into forests and natural reserves.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHoney bees are crucial for our ecosystems as pollinators, but the intensive use of plant protection products (PPPs) in agriculture poses a risk for them. PPPs do not only affect target organisms but also affect non-targets, such as the honey bee and their microbiome. This study is the first of its kind, aiming to characterize the effect of PPPs on the microbiome of the cuticle of honey bees.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe increasing loss of pollinators over the last decades has become more and more evident. Intensive use of plant protection products is one key factor contributing to this decline. Especially the mixture of different plant protection products can pose an increased risk for pollinators as synergistic effects may occur.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHoneybees and wild bees are among the most important pollinators of both wild and cultivated landscapes. In recent years, however, a significant decline in these pollinators has been recorded. This decrease can have many causes including the heavy use of biocidal plant protection products in agriculture.
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