[Pollinator] List of Neonicotinoid Reseach - please add to it

Tue Jul 31 11:25:49 PDT 2012

This call comes from Buglife  in England, and it you want to add studies to 
the list, please send them both to  _info at pollinator.org_ 
(mailto:info at pollinator.org)  and _Matt.Shardlow at BUGLIFE.ORG.UK_ 
(mailto:Matt.Shardlow at BUGLIFE.ORG.UK) .   We will post this list on _www.pollinator.org_ 
(http://www.pollinator.org/)  and _www.nappc.org_ (http://www.nappc.org/) .   
____________________________________
 From: Matt.Shardlow at BUGLIFE.ORG.UK
To: ICPBR at LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
Sent:  7/31/2012 2:42:49 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time
Subj: Re: Bee protection group  (bumblebee) under fire for failing to fight 
pesticide "armageddon."

Here is a summary of recent research into Neonicotinoids,  please let me 
know if there are any significant studies  missing.

Cheers

Matt

Matt Shardlow
Chief  Executive

Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation Trust
First  Floor
90 Bridge Street
Peterborough 
PE1 1DY 

01733 201210  
079 21 700151
www.buglife.org.uk

Conserving the small things that  run the world.

Fun ways to help bugs! Keen Buglife supporters are  running Half-marathons, 
losing weight and giving up chocolate - all to raise  money for Buglife! 
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weekend? Click here to find out more.
Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation  Trust is a company limited by 
guarantee,  Registered in England at First  Floor, 90 Bridge Street, 
Peterborough, Cambs, PE1 1DY.    Company  no.  4132695      Registered charity no.   
1092293     Scottish charity no.  SC040004

-----Original Message-----
From: Matt Shardlow 
Sent:  30 July 2012 21:56
To: Peter Kevan; ICPBR at LISTSERV.UOGUELPH.CA
Subject:  RE: Bee protection group (bumblebee) under fire for failing to 
fight pesticide  "armageddon."

In 2009 Buglife did a thorough review of the available  scientific evidence 
of effects of neonicotinoids on insects  
http://www.buglife.org.uk/Resources/Buglife/revised%20neonics%20report.pdf

We  have not repeated this recently, but another review is justified.  We 
do  also have a summary of post 2009 research but can’t claim it is 
comprehensive; I  can circulate that tomorrow if people are interested.

For ICPBR members  to focus on the scientific data is of course correct, 
but also significant and  relevant to the ICPBR are the regulatory pesticide 
authorisation processes and  the scientific quality and breadth of risk 
assessment of those  processes.

Currently the risk assessment processes do not include any  assessment of 
the effects of insecticides on wild pollinators, hence  formal  pesticide 
approval processes (such as the EU DAR) cannot assure us  that the approved 
chemicals are therefore environmentally safe.  This is  not just the opinion of 
Buglife, it is also the opinion of Defra/Fera and the  European Food Safety 
Authority.

The 2008 Fera/Defra report ‘Are pesticide  risk assessments for honeybees 
protective of other pollinators’ states  that:-

“There are many cases where species are several orders of  magnitude more 
sensitive on a per individual or weight basis than honeybees,  e.g. 
Lepidopteran larvae. Therefore more detailed information on the toxicity of  
pesticides to a range of species and life stages is required to assess the  
sensitivity of wild pollinators relative to honeybees.”

“Given the wide  range of plants species dependent on non-Apis 
[non-Honeybee] pollinators a  reduction in wild pollinators is likely to have knock on 
effects on the plant  species pollinated by them, resulting in less forage.”  

“More  detailed toxicity and exposure information for a range of species is 
required  for a robust assessment of the risk  posed.”

http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=More&Location=None&C
ompleted=0&ProjectID=15390

The  very recent ‘Scientific Opinion on the science behind the development 
of a risk  assessment of Plant Protection Products on bees (Apis mellifera, 
Bombus spp. and  solitary bees)’ European Food Safety Authority (2012) 
report  states:-

“Larvae of solitary bees consume large mass provisions with  unprocessed 
pollen thus, compared with honey bee larvae, they are more exposed  to 
residues in pollen. Moreover, bumble bees and solitary bees may be exposed to  a 
larger extent via contact with nesting material (soil or plants) compared to  
honey bees, suggesting the need for a separate risk assessment for bumble 
bees  and solitary  bees.”

http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/2668.htm

I  hope most ICPBR members can support the call for introducing a range of 
standard  tests of pesticides across a range of non-target pollinator 
groups.  If we  can achieve these improvements in the scientific process then in 
the future  pesticides are much less likely to damage pollinator populations.

Best  wishes

Matt

Matt Shardlow
Chief Executive

Buglife -  The Invertebrate Conservation Trust First Floor
90 Bridge  Street
Peterborough
PE1 1DY

01733 201210
079 21  700151

www.buglife.org.uk

Conserving the small things that run the  world.

A year of bugs! This year put a reminder in your diary each month  to check 
out the new Bug of the Month. Go to the Buglife website to find out  about 
a new bug every month! 

Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation  Trust is a company limited by 
guarantee,  Registered in England at First  Floor, 90 Bridge Street, 
Peterborough, Cambs, PE1 1DY.    Company  no.  4132695      Registered charity no.  
1092293   Scottish charity no. SC040004

Laurie Davies  Adams
Executive Director
Pollinator Partnership
423 Washington St.,  Suite 500
San Francisco, CA 94111
415.362.1137
_www.pollinator.org_ (http://www.pollinator.org/) 
_www.nappc.org_ (http://www.nappc.org/) 
LDA at pollinator.org

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