© Srdjan Zivulovic/REUTERS
A bee collects pollen from a cherry tree in village Studencice, central Slovenia.
A bee collects pollen from a cherry tree in village Studencice, central Slovenia.
The work has been hailed as important by independent scientists because it sheds light on how the neonicotinoid pesticides can harm bees.
"Pollen is the only source of protein that bees have, and it is vital for rearing their young," said Professor Dave Goulson, at the University of Sussex and who led the study.
"Collecting it is fiddly, slow work for the bees and intoxicated bees become much worse at it. Without much pollen, nests will inevitably struggle."A two-year EU ban of three neonicotinoids, the most widely used insecticides in the world, began in December, following research that showed harm to honey and bumblebees. The neonicotinoids are "systemic" pesticides, being applied to seeds so that the chemical spreads within the plants. Over three-quarters of the world's food crops require insect pollination, but bees have declined in recent decades due to loss of flower-rich habitat, disease and pesticide use.
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