Data from: Contrasting effects of fungicide and herbicide active ingredients and their formulations on bumblebee learning and behaviour

This dataset contains data collecting during a Proboscis Extension Reflex paradigm experiment on the effects of fungicides and herbicides on bee behaviour. 
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Fungicides and herbicides are two of the most heavily applied pesticide classes in the world, but receive little research attention with regards to their potential impacts on bees. As they are not designed to target insects, the mechanisms behind potential impacts of these pesticides are unclear. It is therefore important to understand their influence at a range of levels, including sublethal impacts on behaviours like learning. We used the proboscis extension reflex (PER) paradigm to assess how the herbicide glyphosate and the fungicide prothioconazole affect bumblebee olfactory learning. We also assessed responsiveness, and compared the impacts of active ingredient and commercial formulations of both compounds (Roundup biactive and Proline, respectively). We found that learning was not impaired by either formulation but, of the bees which displayed evidence of learning, exposure to prothioconazole active ingredient increased learning level in some situations, while exposure to glyphosate active ingredient resulted in bumblebees being less likely to respond to antennal stimulation with sucrose. Our data suggest that fungicides and herbicides may not negatively impact olfactory learning ability when bumblebees are exposed orally to field-realistic doses in a lab setting, but that glyphosate has the potential to cause changes in responsiveness in bees.