Non-target Toxicity of Neonicotinoid Insecticides Impeding the Behaviour and Population of Bees

The extensive usage of neonicotinoid insecticides in agricultural practices has elicited apprehension regarding their impact on pollinators, especially bees, who hold a crucial role in a large number of flowering plants’ pollination, including crops. The systemic nature of neonicotinoids facilitates their absorption into the plant vascular system then to pollen and nectar, leading to their consumption and accumulation in the bodies of bees. Neonicotinoids impose certain lethal and sublethal consequences on bees, such as impairing foraging behaviour, reducing fertility, weakening immunity, etc., or even death. Ultimately, the overall health of entire bee colonies as well as non-colonial wild bees gets affected. Certain countries have limited or outright prohibited the use of specific neonicotinoids or have implemented more stringent regulations to minimise the risk to non-target organisms. Researchers are actively looking at alternatives to neonicotinoids in pursuit of sustainable agricultural practices. This chapter discusses the use of neonicotinoids in agriculture, their exposure to bees, toxicities, mode of action, and risk mitigation strategies to balance agricultural productivity with environmental protection.