Raül López I Losada
Doktorand
European arthropods and their role in pollination: scientific report of their biodiversity, ecology and sensitivity to biocides
Författare
Summary, in English
Non-bee pollinators (NBP) are a group of species with very diverse ecology. Indeed, they inhabit
various habitats, using these as nesting sites, for shelter, as source of food and as hunting
ground for prey. Depending on the life stage of species, NBPs can inhabit different areas and
their overall contribution to pollination can be diverse. For example, adult butterflies mainly
forage on nectar, whereas their larvae are herbivorous. Based on the highly diverse lifestyle,
NBP’s exposure to biocidal products can take place over different environmental compartments
or matrices and they can be more exposed during certain life stages in which they are more
sensitive. Mainly, exposure can take place through consumption of contaminated food (e.g.,
nectar, pollen, leaves) and water (e.g., puddles, natural water bodies) and/or through contact
to contaminated materials used for shelter or nesting sites (e.g., soil, mud, litter, wood, stems).
Also, when products are sprayed and insects come in contact to them while flying, exposure in
airspace can be assumed. As some biocidal products are used against fly larvae in manure or
dung, exposure of species is possible, if they use dung or manure as food source (e.g. some
adult butterflies) or as nesting sites. Hence, the NBP can get exposed to biocidal products
according to different routes of exposure. This scientific report aims to collect the available
information on NBP in order to facilitate future research on the effects of biocides on these
organisms. To reach this aim, firstly, a literature review related to the ecology and the sensitivity
to insecticides of Diptera, Lepidoptera, non-bee Hymenoptera (Symphyta), and Coleoptera was
done. Furthermore, a collection of toxicity endpoints of NBP exposed to active substances has
been conducted. Ultimately, a data set of 143 toxicity end points in arthropod pollinators has
been gathered across nine active substances and further analysis has been conducted to
establish whether their sensitivity significantly differs to that of the honey bees (HBs). Although
the database is relatively scarce, it seems to indicate that some NBP species, at certain life
stages (e.g., larvae), can be as sensitive or even more sensitive than HBs for some active
substances. Nevertheless, the results shows that the development of a risk assessment approach
on NBP would have to deal with a high heterogeneity and limited knowledge of sensitivity
variability of these organisms. In conclusion, further research is needed to fill the current data
gaps on the NBP ecological traits, which species and for which substances/mode of action they
appear to be more sensitive to address the risk assessment of biocidal products.
various habitats, using these as nesting sites, for shelter, as source of food and as hunting
ground for prey. Depending on the life stage of species, NBPs can inhabit different areas and
their overall contribution to pollination can be diverse. For example, adult butterflies mainly
forage on nectar, whereas their larvae are herbivorous. Based on the highly diverse lifestyle,
NBP’s exposure to biocidal products can take place over different environmental compartments
or matrices and they can be more exposed during certain life stages in which they are more
sensitive. Mainly, exposure can take place through consumption of contaminated food (e.g.,
nectar, pollen, leaves) and water (e.g., puddles, natural water bodies) and/or through contact
to contaminated materials used for shelter or nesting sites (e.g., soil, mud, litter, wood, stems).
Also, when products are sprayed and insects come in contact to them while flying, exposure in
airspace can be assumed. As some biocidal products are used against fly larvae in manure or
dung, exposure of species is possible, if they use dung or manure as food source (e.g. some
adult butterflies) or as nesting sites. Hence, the NBP can get exposed to biocidal products
according to different routes of exposure. This scientific report aims to collect the available
information on NBP in order to facilitate future research on the effects of biocides on these
organisms. To reach this aim, firstly, a literature review related to the ecology and the sensitivity
to insecticides of Diptera, Lepidoptera, non-bee Hymenoptera (Symphyta), and Coleoptera was
done. Furthermore, a collection of toxicity endpoints of NBP exposed to active substances has
been conducted. Ultimately, a data set of 143 toxicity end points in arthropod pollinators has
been gathered across nine active substances and further analysis has been conducted to
establish whether their sensitivity significantly differs to that of the honey bees (HBs). Although
the database is relatively scarce, it seems to indicate that some NBP species, at certain life
stages (e.g., larvae), can be as sensitive or even more sensitive than HBs for some active
substances. Nevertheless, the results shows that the development of a risk assessment approach
on NBP would have to deal with a high heterogeneity and limited knowledge of sensitivity
variability of these organisms. In conclusion, further research is needed to fill the current data
gaps on the NBP ecological traits, which species and for which substances/mode of action they
appear to be more sensitive to address the risk assessment of biocidal products.
Publiceringsår
2022-09-06
Språk
Engelska
Länkar
Dokumenttyp
Rapport
Förlag
European Chemicals Agency
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Övrigt
- ISBN: : 978-92-9468-131-7