title: Effect of flumethrin on survival and olfactory learning in honeybees.
abstract: Flumethrin has been widely used as an acaricide for the control of Varroa mites in commercial honeybee keeping throughout the world for many years. Here we test the mortality of the Asian honeybee Apis cerana cerana after treatment with flumethrin. We also ask (1) how bees react to the odor of flumethrin, (2) whether its odor induces an innate avoidance response, (3) whether its taste transmits an aversive reinforcing component in olfactory learning, and (4) whether its odor or taste can be associated with reward in classical conditioning. Our results show that flumethrin has a negative effect on Apis ceranàs lifespan, induces an innate avoidance response, acts as a punishing reinforcer in olfactory learning, and interferes with the association of an appetitive conditioned stimulus. Furthermore flumethrin uptake within the colony reduces olfactory learning over an extended period of time.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, China. kentan@xtbg.ac.cn
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Shuang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Zhengwei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Randolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Menzel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning; D001516:Bees / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D003214:Conditioning, Classical / Q000187:drug effects*; D007306:Insecticides / Q000009:adverse effects*; D009812:Odorants; D055696:Olfactory Perception / Q000187:drug effects*; D011722:Pyrethrins / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology
chemical_list: D007306:Insecticides; D011722:Pyrethrins; C041392:flumethrin