Calls for new toxicity study guidelines to more fully protect honeybees; a reevaluation of neonicotinoids and neonicotinoid seed treatments; assessment of other pesticides for their potential impacts on pollinators; restrictions on the use of pesticides that are acutely toxic to bees; reduced exposure during planting of pesticide - treated seed; and expedited review of Varroa mite control products. (ota.com)
Even if neonicotinoids are not directly responsible for colony collapse disorder, they could play a part by making bees more susceptible to the parasitic mite Varroa destructor and the parasitic fungus Nosema apis, both prime suspects, adds Christian Krupke, an entomologist at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. (scientificamerican.com)
Plus, keeping colonies free of Varroa mites helps their health. (scientificamerican.com)