Influence of neonicotinoids on pollinators: A review
Akanksha Singla, Heena Barmota, Sanjay Kumar Sahoo, Balpreet Kaur Kang
Abstract
In the field of agriculture, neonicotinoids are used for seed dressing as well as for spraying. They are systemic in nature and are highly efficient in controlling sucking insect pests. But nowadays, the reduction in the count of pollinators is a major concern and this new class of insecticides is being criticized for being the main cause of this destruction. Neonicotinoids affect the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) which directly links with the health of pollinators. So, based on abundant experimental studies reviewed by us, we found that neonicotinoids negatively affect various behavioral attributes of pollinators resulting in a decline in their population. Various limitations are also found in this area of research which will in the future further clarify the main cause behind this loss. Thus, the overall idea of this review is to discuss the hazards of neonicotinoids on pollinators in an organized and chronological order and to suggest the possible preventive measures which can be taken to avoid such a big loss to humanity.