Neonicotinoids disrupt aquatic food webs and decrease fishery yields

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 366; no. 6465; pp. 620 - 623
• Main Authors: Yamamuro, Masumi, Komuro, Takashi, Kamiya, Hiroshi, Kato, Toshikuni, Hasegawa, Hitomi, Kameda, Yutaka
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States The American Association for the Advancement of Science 01.11.2019
• Subjects: Agricultural land; Agrochemicals; Animal Husbandry; Animals; Aquatic environment; Aquatic Organisms - drug effects; Biomass; Collapse; Disruption; Ecosystem; Eels; Fish harvest; Fisheries; Fishes; Food Chain; Food chains; Food webs; Freshwater fish; Insecticides; Insecticides - toxicity; Invertebrates; Invertebrates - drug effects; Japan; Lakes; Neonicotinoids - toxicity; Osmeriformes; Pesticides; Plankton; Pollinators; Population Dynamics; Terrestrial ecosystems; Terrestrial environments; Toxicity; Trophic levels; Vertebrates; Water Quality; Watersheds; Zooplankton; Zooplankton - drug effects; Japan

Invertebrate declines are widespread in terrestrial ecosystems, and pesticide use is often cited as a causal factor. Here, we report that aquatic systems are threatened by the high toxicity and persistence of neonicotinoid insecticides. These effects cascade to higher trophic levels by altering food...