Diesel Confuses Bees

Bees have been struggling to find food because diesel fumes confuse their sense of smell.

16:59 23 November 2015

Toxic nitrous oxide (NOx) in diesel exhausts may be destroying half of the most common flower odours, confusing bees in the process, researchers have said.

 

NOx is a poisonous pollutant produced by diesel engines and has been previously found to confuse bees’ sense of smell, which they rely on to sniff out their food.

 

Lead author Dr Robbie Girling, from the University of Reading's Centre for Agri-Environmental Research, said: "Bees are worth millions to the British economy alone, but we know they have been in decline worldwide.

"We don't think that air pollution from diesel vehicles is the main reason for this decline, but our latest work suggests that it may have a worse effect on the flower odours needed by bees than we initially thought.

 

"People rely on bees and pollinating insects for a large proportion of our food, yet humans have paid the bees back with habitat destruction, insecticides, climate change and air pollution.

 

"This work highlights that pollution from dirty vehicles is not only dangerous to people's health, but could also have an impact on our natural environment and the economy."