Deutsch
  • Honeybees (partly marked) on the edge of a brood frame
Chair of Behavioral Physiology & Sociobiology

Schuhmann, Antonia

Antonia Schuhmann

PhD student
Zoology II / Scheiner lab
Universität Würzburg
Biozentrum
Am Hubland
97074 Würzburg
Building: Bienenstation (B3)
Room: DG8
Link: Scheiner lab
[Translate to Englisch:]

The decline of pollinators has become increasingly evident in recent years. In addition to the honeybee, wild bees such as the bumblebee are particularly affected. However, honeybees and wild bees play an important role as pollinators and are indispensable for maintaining a wide variety of ecosystems. There are many causes for pollinator decline. One important factor is the use of plant protection products.

In most cases, different insecticides and fungicides are applied in combination, resulting in mixtures of active ingredients. However, the foraging behavior of bees also favors such a mix. Mixtures of different plant protection products can lead to synergistic effects, which are still largely unexplored.

In my project I would like to investigate the effect of approved insecticides and fungicides and their mixture on honeybees and bumblebees. The focus will be on the responsiveness to sucrose, the learning behavior and the flight activity of the animals.

The studies should help to counteract the decline of pollinators and enable recommendations to be made regarding the combined application of insecticides and fungicides.

The project is part of the BayÖkotox project network and is supported by  The German Federal Environmental Foundation (Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt DBU).

  • Bumblebees are resilient to neonicotinoid-fungicide combinations. Schuhmann, Antonia; Schulte, Janna; Feldhaar, Heike; Scheiner, Ricarda. In Environment International, 186, p. 108608. 2024.
  • A combination of the frequent fungicides boscalid and dimoxystrobin with the neonicotinoid acetamiprid in field-realistic concentrations does not affect sucrose responsiveness and learning behavior of honeybees. Schuhmann, Antonia; Scheiner, Ricarda. In Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 256, p. 114850. 2023.
  • Interaction of Insecticides and Fungicides in Bees. Schuhmann, Antonia; Schmid, Anna Paulina; Manzer, Sarah; Schulte, Janna; Scheiner, Ricarda. In Frontiers in Insect Science, 1. Frontiers Media {SA}, 2022.

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