Photo credit: U.S. Geological Survey

Neonicotinoid pesticides and glyphosate are widely used on crops, and their residues are often  found together on crops. Neonicotinoids have been widely implicated in declines in bee health. Even though it is an herbicide, glyphosate has also been linked to negative health effects in honeybees. A new study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology tested the effect of long-term, low-level exposure to these pesticides on honeybees. They found that exposure to the neonicotinoid imidacloprid and glyphosate affected the ability of bees to learn and reduced their responsiveness to sugar. Glyphosate exposure also led to reduced bee appetite when the bees were rearing their young. Young honeybees were the most affected.