A study undertaken by British scientists has revealed that certain pesticides can have a devastating effect on bumblebees.
Different colonies of bumblebees were exposed to the pesticides neonicotinoid and pyrethroid over four weeks at similar levels to those used in fields by farmers. What the researchers found was that the bees were about twice as likely to die following exposure than they were if they were not exposed.
Their findings, published in the journal Nature said, "Chronic exposure impairs natural foraging behaviour and increases worker mortality, leading to significant reductions in brood development and colony success." Following exposure, bees would become confused, would either die in the nest or did not return after leaving the nest to forage, and they gathered less pollen.
The desire to protect bees has become a long-standing one, especially as the UN estimates that one third of all plant-based foods consumed by humans depend on bee pollination.
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Editor's note
Image courtesy of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust's Twitter feed. Follow them @BumblebeeTrust.
