The rape and the bees
In a field trial with genetically modified oilseed rape which is resistant to a herbicide , two biosafety research projects are looking at possible effects on bees.
Location of the beehives on the trial site. Left: artificial nests for wild bees; right: honey bee colony.
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Pollen is spread by bees as well as by other means. The bees carry it from flower to flower and collect it in ‘pollen loads’ to feed their larvae and to process into honey along with nectar. If in future GM oilseed rape is planted on the fields, the bees will eat this pollen as well. A research project investigated the extent to which transgenic oilseed rape pollen is found in the pollen collected by the bees and whether genes are transferred from genetically modified DNA to micro-organisms in the bee intestine. |
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All photos on this page were taken by Dr. Stefan Kühne, director of the project "The effects on transgenic oilseed rape pollen on bees "
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