The Impact of Selected Pesticides on Honey Bees

The presence of honey bee in the environment has a significant impact on global agricultural production. While searching for pollen and nectar, the bee is often exposed to several contaminants such as plant protection products. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of selected pesticides from various groups (fungicides, herbicides, insecticides) on the way the bees harvested food as well as on their behavior, survival rate and the concentration of certain elements in the organisms of bee. The concentration possibly similar to this applied in agriculture and recommended by the manufacturers, were used. The research material was analyzed in terms of the presence of trace elements (manganese, copper, iron, nickel, zinc, lead, cadmium) of different toxicity. The study clearly indicates that selected pesticides used for the purpose of plant protection and plant cultivation may adversely on bees' behavior and accumulation of trace elements in their body. Among the tested pesticides particular attention should be paid to fungicides that are not commonly tested for their effects on the honey organ. In own studies showed, their effect significantly changed the content of copper and negatively affected the survival of the bees.