Probably the most remarkable thing about this story is that it is somehow regarded as "news". The "Bulletin of Insectology" first started publishing on the topic ten years ago. Interestingly, they published papers by honey bee researchers AND Bayer researchers.

> For several years, reports by French and Italian beekeepers have been suggesting a lethal effect of imidacloprid on honey bees; in particular, the molecule has been related to honey bee mortality and decrease of hive populations, affecting the orientation and ability of honey bees to return to the hive.

Effects of sub-lethal imidacloprid doses on the homing rate and foraging activity of honey bees
Laura BORTOLOTTI, et al. Istituto Nazionale di Apicoltura, Bologna, Italy
Bulletin of Insectology 56 (1): 63-67 (2003)

> Honeybees foraging in crop plants seed-dressed with imidacloprid may be exposed to imidacloprid and imidacloprid plant me- tabolites. Metabolism studies on a large variety of crop plants were reviewed to identify plant metabolites which have a potential toxicological relevance to honeybees. Three different bioassays were conducted to characterize the pharmacological and toxico- logical profile of imidacloprid and these potentially relevant plant metabolites in the honeybee.

Effects of imidacloprid and common plant metabolites of imidacloprid in the honeybee: toxicological and biochemical considerations
Richard SCHMUCK, et al. Bayer CropScience, Institute for Environmental Biology, Monheim, Germany 
Bulletin of Insectology 56 (1): 27-34 (2003)

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