Journal
CHEMOSPHERE
Volume 254, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.126604
Keywords
Imidacloprid; Macroinvertebrates; Species sensitivity distribution; SimpleBox; Insecticides; Freshwater species
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Recent declines of insects' biomass have been a major point of interest. While several causes, including use of neonicotinoids like imidacloprid, have been suggested, scientific underpinning is limited. The aim of our study was to assess the potential risk of imidacloprid for freshwater fauna in the Netherlands and to validate the SimpleBox model to allow application elsewhere. To this end, we compared imidacloprid concentrations estimated from emissions using the SimpleBox model to measurements obtained from monitoring databases and calculated the ecological risk based on measured concentrations for aquatic fauna. Imidacloprid concentration estimations were within the range measured, opening opportunities for application of SimpleBox to regions where measurements are limited. Aquatic insects were found to be most sensitive to imidacloprid while amphibians and fish are least sensitive to imidacloprid. In particular, the ecological risk of measured imidacloprid concentration in the Netherlands was 1%, implying that concentrations frequently exceed levels that are lethal in short-term experiments. Hence, based on lab toxicity data, the present study suggests that imidacloprid concentrations can be high enough to explain insect decline observed in the same areas. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available