Publication details
Bee-coming disturbed: The impact of electromagnetic fields on bumblebee sleep-wake rhythms
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| Year of publication | 2024 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | Potential anthropogenic factors threatening insect pollinators include, but are not limited to, magnetic (MF) and electromagnetic fields (EMF) generated by all electronic devices. In insects, there is evidence of the effect of EMFs on circadian rhythms. In this study, we focused on the effect of static MFs on sleep-wake rhythms in the bumblebee Bombus terrestris. We monitored the free-running locomotor activity of individually kept bumblebees for 10 days under constant conditions in the absence of visible light. Three types of static MF (0, 50 and 120 µT) were used. The movements of each individual were monitored by a camera and the images were processed by image analyzing software. Both the period length and the power of periodicity were compared between groups. Our preliminary data show that there was no difference in period length in the different MFs, but we found significant difference in the power of periodicity, which was stronger in the hypomagnetic field (0 µT) compared to the rhythm in 120 µT MF. Overall, the work shows that the insect circadian rhythm was indeed sensitive to unnatural MFs. Since B. terrestris shares the same type of potential magnetic sensor, the circadian clock protein Cryptochrome, with vertebrates, our results primarily highlight the potential risk of EMFs to pollinators, but may also be important for research on the sensitivity of vertebrates to human-induced EMFs. |
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