Queen in the Broadcast: How Radio Electromagnetic Noise Affects Reproduction in Honeybee Colony
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| Rok publikování | 2025 |
| Druh | Další prezentace na konferencích |
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| Popis | The biological effects of electromagnetic (EMF) radiation, increasingly present in humanaltered environments, remain poorly understood. Even though electromagnetic radio frequencies (RF) emitted from radio transmitters, TV broadcasting or cell towers fulfill hygienic safety standards, a growing number of studies report potential biological effects on a wide range of organisms — including insects. In this study, we investigated the effect of a RF exposure on the reproductive success of young honeybee (Apis mellifera) queen in brood boxes, i.e. small hives used by beekeepers to raise a young queen laying eggs. In the course of five seasons, we exposed experimental hives to a broadband RF field within a frequency range 100 kHz–200 MHz previously shown to disrupt compass orientation in various animal species. Our results showed that: A) in hives exposed to RF, the number of queens laying eggs was significantly less compared to control hives, and B) this effect was apparent later in the season (August–September). We speculate that RF exposure might impair the queens' ability to orient back to the hive after mating flights or their motivation to return to affected hives might be impaired. This is especially apparent when other environmental stressors such as declining temperatures, reduced food availability, and a shortage of drones, all typical for the late season, occur. These findings suggest that chronic exposure to anthropogenic RF noise may interfere with reproductive success in bees, with potential consequences for colony survival. The work was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic grant QL24010241. |
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