Honeybees

Planting of neonicotinoid-treated maize poses risks for nontarget organisms over a wide area without consistent crop yield benefit

Neonicotinoid insecticides are used as seed treatments on most grain and oilseed crops in the U.S., yet the extent and likelihood of spread of insecticide residues during planting has not previously been quantified. Honeybees are the best model for estimating exposures in mobile insects. We measured neonicotinoid dust drift during maize sowing and used sites of maize fields, apiary locations, and honeybee foraging radii to estimate likelihood of forager exposure. We performed a concurrent multiyear field assessment of the pest-management benefits of neonicotinoid-treated maize.

Why Insect Decline Matters

Scientists have described 1 million species of insects so far, and estimate that at least 4 million species worldwide are still unrecorded. For people living in areas with ample wilderness and a plethora of biting mosquitoes that carry malaria and other diseases, a decline in insect populations might seem like an outlandish concern. But in areas with intensive industrialized agriculture, the drop in insect populations is worrying.

Stille ramp: de insecten verdwijnen

Er zijn steeds minder insecten. Uit onderzoek blijkt dat de hoeveelheid insecten in de natuurgebieden rond het Duitse Krefeld met bijna 80% is afgenomen in 25 jaar van 1989 tot 2014. Een afname die volgens een publicatie in Science niet alleen in Duitsland geconstateerd wordt, maar ook in andere landen. Zo daalde het aantal insecten in Schotland met 60%. Het onderzoek in Krefeld werd uitgevoerd in natuurgebieden waar niet zo extreem veel was veranderd in het beheer van die gebieden zelf. Maar in de omgeving is wel veel veranderd.

Bijensterfte in de VS: 44% sneuvelde in 2015/2016

Onderzoek in opdracht van het Amerikaanse ministerie van Landbouw toont aan dat 44 procent van de bijen het afgelopen jaar is gesneuveld. Dat dit patroon zich voor de tweede keer herhaalt vinden experts “ronduit alarmerend”. Zowel de verliezen tijdens de winter als die tijdens de zomer namen toe ten opzichte van het jaar daarvoor. Het is nu al het tweede jaar op rij dat de verliezen tijdens de zomer de concurrentie kunnen aangaan met die van de winter.

Nicht nur Bienen sind in ihrer Existenz bedroht, sondern alle Insekten

Bereits im Jahr 1962 wurde von Rachel Carson der stumme Frühling vorhergesagt, wenn die Industrialisierung der Landwirtschaft und die Nutzung von Chemikalien auf den Äckern fortschreiten: Ein Frühling ohne das vertraute Summen von Bienen, Hummeln, Fliegen, Käfern und anderen Insekten. Dieses Szenario droht nun Wirklichkeit zu werden, wenn wir nicht sofort handeln.

Neonicotinoid insecticides can persist in water for a long time and are disrupting the food chain for wildlife

Studies on the risks of neonicotinoids have often focused on bees — pollinators vital to farm production that have been experiencing population declines — but “it’s really not just about bees,” said Christy Morrissey, a professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Saskatchewan.

Italian agronomists show that sustainable maize production is possible without neonicotinoids

In the early 2000s, Italian beekeepers began to report bee mortality events linked to maize sowing. Evidence pointed to three neonicotinoids (imidacloprid, clothianidin, thiamethoxam) and a phenylpyrazole (fipronil) used for seed dressing that were dispersed in the environment during sowing. Following these events and based on the precautionary principle, in September 2008, the Italian Ministry of Health suspended these four active ingredients as maize seed dressing.

Honeybees encounter danger due to lingering and wandering pesticides

Honeybees -- employed to pollinate crops during the blooming season -- encounter danger due to lingering and wandering pesticides, according to a new Cornell University study that analyzed the bee's own food. Researchers used 120 pristine honeybee colonies that were placed near 30 apple orchards around New York state. After allowing the bees to forage for several days during the apple flowering period, the scientists examined each hive's "beebread" -- the bees' food stores made from gathered pollen -- to search for traces of pesticides.

120.000 Bienenvölker haben den Winter in Deutschland nicht überlebt

Die stille Harmonie der gelb-schwarzen Insekten gibt es nur noch in alten Kinderliedern. Tatsächlich kämpfen nicht nur die deutschen, sondern auch die europäischen Bienen ums Überleben. Als im Vormonat der Imkerverband zur Jahrestagung nach Berlin lud, machten erschreckende Zahlen die Runde: Von den etwa 700.000 Bienenvölkern, die der Verband hierzulande bisher zählte, haben rund 120.000 den Winter nicht überlebt. Auch wenn daran eingeschleppte Parasiten wie die Varroa-Milbe nicht ganz unbeteiligt ist, geben viele Fachleute Pestiziden eine erhebliche Mitschuld.

Neonicotinoids detected in drinking water

One of the most dangerous pesticides, neonicotinoids, has been found in drinking water, a new study reveals. Neonicotinoids, most of which were released in the 1990s, were designed to be the most environmentally-friendly chemicals on the market and soon became the most widely used, especially in the Midwest. The compounds don't just coat leaves and stems but work their way into plant tissue, meaning fewer sprays are needed. But the neonics, as they are nicknamed, became reputable for being something else - a bee killer, wreaking havoc on insect nervous systems.