Antibiotic pollution may be key factor in honeybee colony collapses

Gaby Clark

Scientific Editor

Robert Egan

Senior Editor

High losses of honeybee colonies, which play a crucial role in global food production, have caused concern around the world. Many potential factors for the population declines have been cited, but a potentially significant threat to pollinator health—environmental antibiotic pollution from agricultural sources—has been largely overlooked, according to a new article published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

"Climate change, habitat loss, parasites, pesticides and poor nutrition are established pollinator threats, whereas environmental antibiotic pollution remains poorly understood," said the manuscript. "Antibiotic exposure may independently affect bees or interact with these stressors, potentially compounding adverse health effects."

The manuscript is authored by Laura Huber, Kiranmayee Bhimavarapu, Alinne L.R. Santana-Pereira and Stuart B. Price of Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine, Geoffrey R. Williams and Madison Cooley of Auburn's College of Agriculture, and Andrew J. Price of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Soil Dynamics Laboratory in Auburn. Huber is the lead author.

The primary source of exposure in honeybees is the direct use of antibiotic compounds in agriculture or within hives, but activities such as antibiotic overuse, wastewater discharge, manure application and agricultural runoff may represent an even broader source of antibiotic contamination, the researchers said. Residues in agricultural fields create environmental reservoirs of antibiotics and antimicrobial resistance in soil, water and air, which may then expose honeybees while they forage on flowering plants.

"Honeybees interact with soil, water, flowers, plant-associated microbiota, livestock-impacted landscapes and urban environments before transporting microorganisms and environmental contaminants back to the colony, where they may influence colony health and contaminate bee-derived food products consumed by humans," the researchers said. "While the effects of direct antibiotic exposure on honeybees have been studied, the consequences of indirect environmental exposure remain largely unknown."

"As key providers of pollination services that sustain biodiversity, crop production and food security, honeybees link environmental, animal and human health," the authors wrote, noting that insects are the primary pollinator for three-quarters of all cultivated crops and honeybees are the most important, accounting for 80% of global agricultural pollination services.

Based upon their review of existing studies and scientific literature, the researchers said the "key knowledge gap highlighted is the limited understanding of these indirect environmental exposure pathways and their impacts on honeybee health."

The authors recommended extensive new studies and mitigation strategies aimed at reducing nonessential antibiotic use in livestock systems and developing alternatives to managing hive diseases, among other measures.

Publication details

Kiranmayee Bhimavarapu et al., Current and emerging threats to honey bee health: a One Health perspective on antibiotic pollution, Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (2026). DOI: 10.2460/javma.26.07.0607

Journal information:
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association

Key concepts

nonpoint-source pollution

pharmaceutical contamination

pollinators

contaminant transport

Colony Collapse

Provided by American Veterinary Medical Association

Citation: Antibiotic pollution may be key factor in honeybee colony collapses (2026, November 5) retrieved 5 November 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2026-11-antibiotic-pollution-key-factor-honeybee.html