Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 23, 2026

Evaluating the Effect of Pesticides on the Larvae of the Solitary Bees
Published on: October 15, 2021
A common pesticide decreases foraging success and survival in honey bees
Mickaël Henry1, Maxime Béguin, Fabrice Requier
1Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, UR406 Abeilles et Environnement, F-84914 Avignon, France. mickael.henry@avignon.inra.fr
Abstract:
Nonlethal exposure of honey bees to thiamethoxam (neonicotinoid systemic pesticide) causes high mortality due to homing failure at levels that could put a colony at risk of collapse. Simulated exposure events on free-ranging foragers labeled with a radio-frequency identification tag suggest that homing is impaired by thiamethoxam intoxication. These experiments offer new insights into the consequences of common neonicotinoid pesticides used worldwide.

