reproductive-health

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Larval deltamethrin exposure causes severe cross-stage carryover toxicity and male reproductive failure in Osmia cornifrons.

PubMed · 2026-06-17

A pesticide sprayed on orchards leaves lasting damage in mason bees even when larvae are exposed to trace amounts — reducing sperm count, viability, and female survival, and making adult bees more vulnerable rather than tolerant when re-exposed.

Larval exposure to 10 ppm deltamethrin caused over 50% mortality before adulthood in Osmia cornifrons mason bees.

Even the lowest dose tested (0.001 ppm, far below typical field concentrations) caused significant reductions in male sperm abundance and viability that persisted into adulthood.

Female emergence declined at all exposure levels, skewing sex ratios increasingly male — a signal of population-level risk since females drive reproduction.

reproductive-health

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