Pesticides putting bees off the scent

PESTICIDES used to protect crops have a significant negative impact on the learning and memory abilities of bees, according to a new study.

Drawing together the findings of a decade of research, a large-scale study by the Royal Holloway University of London reveals that worker bees exposed even to very small doses of pesticides are less likely to learn and memorise a rewarding scent.

By exposing the bees in the study to low levels of pesticides that bees would routinely encounter in the field, the study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, provides a good, realistic indication of real-life effects.

Learning about floral scents is vital to a bee’s ability to search for food. To do so, insects must remember what type of flowers to visit, where to find them, which flowers they have recently drained of nectar, and how to find their way back to the hive. Samantha Herbert