Pesticides Prevent Proper Pollination
CBC Radio | Posted: November 20, 2015 8:58 PM | Last Updated: November 20, 2015
Neonicotinoid pesticides cause bumblebees to pollinate less effectively.
Neonicotinoid pesticides are a widely used and effective way to prevent damage to important crops, but there are significant concerns about their impact on non-pest insects, especially pollinators like bees.
Research has already revealed that sub-lethal doses of these pesticides can affect bee behaviour, including reproduction. Now, new work by Dr.Nigel Raine from the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Guelph, and his colleagues, has shown that bees who consume these chemicals are less effective pollinators.
In their study, they gave bumble-bees the kind of doses they might encounter in nature, and observed how well they pollinated apple trees. The bees were less efficient pollinators and the fruit production of the trees suffered as a result. This raises new concerns about how pesticides' impact on pollinators might affect both agricultural crop and wild plant productivity.
Related Links
- Paper in Nature
- University of Guelph release
- CBC News story
- The Atlantic story
- The Guardian story
- Quirks feature: The Birds and the Bees - and the Pesticides
- Quirks story: Bees Get a Buzz from Pesticides
- University of Guelph release
- CBC News story
- The Atlantic story
- The Guardian story
- Quirks feature: The Birds and the Bees - and the Pesticides
- Quirks story: Bees Get a Buzz from Pesticides