Exposure of honeybees (Apis mellifera) in Saskatchewan, Canada to organophosphorus insecticides

Abstract

Concentrations of 14 organophosphorus insecticides (OPs) were measured in Apis mellifera L. (European honeybee) and hive matrices (honey and bee bread). Samples were collected from seven randomly selected colonies in central Saskatchewan during the summer of 2013. LC-MS/MS was used to identify and quantify individual OP by use of a modified quick easy cheap effective rugged safe (QuEChERS) method. Diazinon, dimethoate, and chlorpyrifos-oxon were the only OPs detected in honey with mean concentrations of 0.3, 1.5, and 0.2 ng/g, wet mass (wm), respectively. Fenamiphos, chlorpyrifos, and chlorpyrifos methyl were the only OPs detected in bee bread, with mean concentrations of 0.4, 2.7, and 15.8 ng/g, wm, respectively, while ethoprop, malathion, and dichlorvos were the only OPs detected in bees with mean concentrations of 1.4, 3.7, and 889.2 ng/g, wm, respectively. Total hazard quotients (HQs), based on lethality of bees exposed to OPs in honey and pollen consumed by bees ranged from 0.01 to 0.06 and based on lethality of bees from direct exposure to OPs ranged from 0.3 to 0.4 which suggests little hazard of OPs to Saskatchewan beehives.