Glyphosate exposure cuts honeybee foraging and alters brain chemistry
A Virginia Tech study found that honeybees exposed to the common herbicide glyphosate foraged 13 % less after three days and showed changes in brain chemicals linked to behavior.
In a controlled experiment, Virginia Tech scientists offered honeybees two artificial feeders, one laced with glyphosate, the other plain, and tracked their behavior over several days. After just three days, bees that consumed the herbicide made 13 % fewer foraging trips than their untreated counterparts. Subsequent brain analyses identified alterations in biogenic amines and other neurochemical markers associated with foraging behavior.
Lead researcher Margaret Couvillon noted that even modest reductions in individual foraging can translate into significant losses in honey production and pollination services for whole hives. The study, supported by a grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and a graduate student award, appears in the Journal of Experimental Biology. Co-author Laura McHenry, now a postdoctoral fellow at Penn State, says further work is needed to gauge real-world impacts of glyphosate on pollinators.
Why it matters
Glyphosate's subtle effects on bees could undermine pollination and honey supplies, affecting agriculture and ecosystems.
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