Phorate (O,O-Diethyl S-[(ethylsulfanyl)methyl] phosphorodithioate) is an organophosphate, the very class of insecticides that neonicotinoids can replace. They are generally far more harmful than neonics and are mostly phased out by now. They include things like  parathion, malathion, chlorpyrifos, diazinon, and coumaphos. 

new work on pesticides and bees:

> Pesticide residues and bee mortality were monitored in four apiaries for six months. Coumaphos was detected in 94% of the samples. Almost 80% of the samples had chlorpyrifos, 68% dimethoate, and 32% imidacloprid. 

> Of all agrochemical pesticides found in this study, chlorpyrifos was the most frequent, both in percentage and in number of positive cases. This organophosphate of high toxicity for honey bees is one of the most ubiquitous xenobiotic found in hive matrices like honey bee wax, pollen, and adult honey bees.

> It can be concluded that chlorpyrifos and dimethoate were the main implicated pesticides in honey bee mortality episodes because of their high toxicity, high concentrations detected in the dead honey bee samples, and their coincidence with honey bee mortality peaks. Imidacloprid concentrations in the samples were probably involved in certain mortality episodes during the study and its effects on honey bee colonies were added to those caused by the organophosphates chlorpyrifos and dimethoate.

Calatayud-Vernich, P., Calatayud, F., Simó, E., Suarez-Varela, M. M., & Picó, Y. (2016). Influence of pesticide use in fruit orchards during blooming on honeybee mortality in 4 experimental apiaries. Science of The Total Environment, 541, 33-41.

PLB

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