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Fungicides in nectar and pollen collected by bumble bees in a cherry orchard

Published by U.S. Geological Survey | Department of the Interior | Metadata Last Checked: January 27, 2026 | Last Modified: 2020-08-12T00:00:00Z
Lab-reared colonies of Bombus huntii (Hunt bumble bee) were deployed in a commercial cherry orchard in the spring of 2016. A fungicide formulation containing boscalid (25.2%) and pyraclostrobin (12.8%) was applied one time at the recommended label rate. Nectar and pollen were collected daily, beginning two days before spray application and continuing for ten days following. Nectar samples were extracted with acetonitrile and cleaned up using dispersive solid-phase extraction with primary-secondary amine, C18, and magnesium sulfate. Pollen samples were extracted with ethyl acetate. Both types of samples were analyzed by GC-MS/MS for boscalid and pyraclostrobin. Fungicide concentrations in nectar varied spatially (by hive) and temporally. Individual pollen balls were visually identified as to primary and secondary plant sources. Pollen primarily from cherries contained the highest concentrations of the fungicides. There are 2 csv sets related to this data release.

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