Exposure to environmental pollutants, including trace metals, is a major driver of bee decline worldwide. While pesticides undergo standardised risk assessments (i.e., LD) and the implementation of online databases, no such approaches exist for trace metals. Here, using acute oral exposure, we determined the LC, LD, and mass-standardised LD of copper and cadmium, essential and non-essential metals, respectively, in workers and males of the buff-tailed bumble bee. We also evaluated gut damage and sucrose consumption in workers post-exposure. Cadmium was more toxic than copper for workers at same doses, although both metals induced severe gut melanisation and reduced sucrose consumption at high concentrations. Males displayed higher tolerance to cadmium, but it was correlated to their higher body mass, emphasising the necessity for reporting mass-standardised LD for genuine sex comparisons in risk assessments. Our findings advocate for the establishment of databases focusing on metal-induced lethal effects on model bee species.

中文翻译：

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黄尾熊蜂对铜和镉的致死效应和性别特异性耐受性


接触包括微量金属在内的环境污染物是全球蜜蜂数量下降的主要驱动因素。虽然农药经过标准化风险评估（即 LD）并实施在线数据库，但微量金属不存在这样的方法。在这里，通过急性口服暴露，我们分别测定了黄尾大黄蜂工蜂和雄性黄尾大黄蜂中铜和镉（必需金属和非必需金属）的 LC、LD 和质量标准化 LD。我们还评估了暴露后工人的肠道损伤和蔗糖消耗。在相同剂量下，镉对工人的毒性比铜更大，尽管这两种金属在高浓度下都会引起严重的肠道黑化并减少蔗糖的消耗。男性对镉表现出较高的耐受性，但这与其较高的体重相关，这强调了报告质量标准化 LD 的必要性，以便在风险评估中进行真正的性别比较。我们的研究结果主张建立数据库，重点关注金属对模式蜂种造成的致死影响。