Extrapolation of acute toxicity across bee species

In applying cross-species extrapolation safety factors from honeybees to other bee species, some basic principles of toxicity have not been included, for example, the importance of body mass in determining a toxic dose. The present study re-analyzed published toxicity data, taking into account the reported mass of the individuals in the identified species. The analysis demonstrated a shift to the left in the distribution of sensitivity of honeybees relative to 20 other bee species when body size is taken into account, with the 95(th) percentile for contact and oral toxicity reducing from 10.7 (based on μg/individual bee) to 5.0 (based on μg/g bodyweight). Such an approach results in the real drivers of species differences in sensitivity-such as variability in absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion in and target-receptor binding-being more realistically reflected in the revised safety factor. Body mass can also be used to underpin the other parameter of first-tier risk assessment, that is, exposure. However, the key exposure factors that cannot be predicted from bodyweight are the effects of ecology and behavior of the different species on exposure to a treated crop. Further data are required to understand the biology of species associated with agricultural crops and the potential consequences of effects on individuals at the levels of the colony or bee populations. This information will allow the development of appropriate higher-tier refinement of risk assessments and testing strategies rather than extensive additional toxicity testing at Tier 1. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2016;12:622-626. © 2015 SETAC.