POLLINATORS POLLINATION AND FOOD PRODUCTION

THE ASSESSMENT REPORT ON POLLINATORS, POLLINATION AND FOOD PRODUCTION
potential for synergism between the EBI fungicides and
neonicotinoid insecticides (Schmuck et al., 2003; Iwasa
et al., 2004) through the same mechanism, with reported
increases in toxicity up to 500-fold. However, there is also
evidence that the scale of synergism observed is doserelated
with a low or no increase in toxicity at field-realistic
dose levels (Thompson et al., 2014). There is some evidence
that effects in honey bees at the nerve synapse receptor
level between organophosphorus and neonicotinoid
insecticides are additive (Palmer et al., 2013), and effects of
lambda-cyhalothrin and imidacloprid on colony performance
are additive in the bumble bee B. terrestris (Gill et al., 2012),
as may be expected from the differing mode of action of
these compounds. There is also limited evidence of the
interactions between veterinary medicines used in honey
bee colonies, such as varroacides (Johnson et al., 2013)
with some evidence that other classes of pharmaceuticals,
such as antibiotics, interacting with multi-drug resistance
membrane-bound transporter proteins may result in
significantly increased toxicity of varroacides (Hawthorne
and Diveley, 2011).
et al., 2010; Genersch et al., 2010; Chauzat et al., 2011;
Rundlöf et al., 2015), with the most recent statistically
robust field study by Rundlöf et al. 2015 supporting this
conclusion. In some cases (Orantes-Bermejo et al., 2010;
vanEngelsdorp et al., 2010), however, the residues of the
most frequently suspected pesticides (e.g. neonicotinoids)
were not analysed using methodology with sufficiently low
limits of detection (LOD) and limits of quantification (LOQ).
In addition, some studies have highlighted fungicides as
a factor affecting honey bee health adversely, although
their role in colony losses have not yet been demonstrated
(vanEngelsdorp et al., 2009a; Simon-Delso et al., 2014).
The mode of action underlying this observation is currently
unclear. There is some evidence that fungicide exposure
may result in decreased nutritional contribution of bee
bread (processed pollen) by reducing the diversity of fungal
spores returned to the hive and by affecting the diversity
and growth of fungi present in bee bread and thus its
fermentation (Yoder et al., 2013).
2.3.2 GMO cultivation
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2.3.1.6 Evidence of honey bee colony
losses due to pesticide use from
national monitoring programmes
National monitoring approaches have been undertaken
to address directly the role of pesticides in overwintering
honey bee colony losses. To date, these have
concluded that colony loss is a multifactorial issue with the
predominance and combination of different drivers varying
in space and time (section 2.7). There is no clear evidence
that pesticides, particularly the neonicotinoid insecticides,
have directly contributed to these longer-term colony losses
in the EU or US (Chauzat et al., 2006a; Chauzat et al.,
2006b; Chauzat and Faucon, 2007; Chauzat et al., 2009;
Nguyen et al., 2009; vanEngelsdorp et al., 2009b; Chauzat
2.3.2.1 Introduction
Genetically modified (GM) organisms (GMOs) are organisms
that have been modified in a way that does not occur
naturally by mating and/or natural recombination (FAO/
WHO, 2001). One of the most common methods to
do this is by bioengineering transgene(s) into the new
organism. The most common plant transgenes confer
herbicide tolerance (HT), or toxicity towards herbivores
(insect resistance, IR), although other characteristics have
been also engineered (e.g., drought resistance in wheat,
nutritional values in sorghum; James, 2014). As of 2014,
several GM crops were commercialized and grown in 28
countries, representing around 12% of the world’s arable
2. DRIVERS OF CHANGE OF POLLINATORS,
POLLINATION NETWORKS AND POLLINATION
FIGURE 2.3.8
Distribution and uptake of GM-crop production from
1996 to 2014. Yellow: total hectares; blue: hectares
in industrial countries; red: hectares in developing
countries. Green in map caption: lands growing GMcrops.
Modified from James (2014).
Global area of GM-crops (million hectares)
200
150
100
50
0
1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014
World total
Industrial countries
Developing countries