# CATCH THE BUZZ - Movento and Ultor Pesticides Pulled EZezine



## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

12/30/09
12:33 PM


CATCH THE BUZZ - Movento and Ultor Pesticides Pulled EZezine 



CATCH THE BUZZ


Two Stories from The Xerces Society and Pollinator Protection Big Win for Bees: Judge Pulls Pesticide



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NEW YORK (December 29, 2009) – A pesticide that could be dangerously toxic to America’s honey bees must be pulled from store shelves as a result of a suit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the Xerces Society. In an order issued last week, a federal court in New York invalidated EPA’s approval of the pesticide spirotetramat (manufactured by Bayer CropScience under the trade names Movento and




Ultor) and ordered the agency to reevaluate the chemical in compliance with the law. The court’s order goes into effect on January 15, 2010, and makes future sales of Movento illegal in the United States.


And, the reaction, from Bloomberg News…



http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601100&sid=awNvfcIKf4AY


Bayer ‘Disappointed’ in Ruling on Chemical That May Harm Bees


By Alan Bjerga

rEGARDS,
eRNIE


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

From the Ezine article:
"Environmental groups say the chemical causes harm to honey bees."


MOVENTOS LABEL:
http://fs1.agrian.com/pdfs/MOVENTO_Label3.pdf

"This product is potentially toxic to honey bee larvae through residues in pollen and nectar, but not to adult honey bees. Exposure of
adult bees to direct treatment or residues on blooming crops can lead to effects on honey bee larvae."

TREE NUTS
Crops of Crop Group 14 Including: Almond, Beechnut, Brazil nut, Butternut, Cashew, Chestnut, Chinquapin, Filbert (hazelnut),
Hickory nut, Macadamia nut (bush nut), Pecan, Walnut [black and English (Persian)]
PESTS CONTROLLED

Aphids
Mealybugs
Phylloxera
San Jose scale
Walnut scale


From Bayers info for Movento:http://www.bayercropscienceus.com/products_and_seeds/insecticides/movento.html

"Movento™ is a revolutionary new insecticide with unique “2-way systemicity”, which distributes the active ingredient upwards and downwards in the plant to find and eliminate even hidden pests wherever they live and feed. Offering broad-spectrum control of many sucking pests, Movento is an important addition to pest management programs in grapes, citrus, vegetables, tree fruits, tree nuts, Christmas trees and hops.
Movento utilizes a unique new active ingredient with a new mode of action, Lipid Biosynthesis Inhibitor (LBI), from a newer chemical class, the Tetramic acids. It is active by ingestion against immature insects feeding on treated plants. In addition, studies have also shown significant impact on exposed female adults by reducing fecundity and survival of offspring, providing more effective overall reduction in pest pressure."

So ,I have a few questions.

Movento is a systemic pesticide.
Is it one of the neo-nics? 
How much is being used on almond trees?
How much is being released in the nectar and pollen?
The plaintiffs said it causes harm to bees. Are there documented losses under field conditions?

Enquiring minds want to know.......


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

loggermike said:


> How much is being used on almond trees?
> How much is being released in the nectar and pollen?
> Enquiring minds want to know.......


Add to that list:
What concentrations of the pesticide are present in guttation droplets?


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## Omie (Nov 10, 2009)

It's all _so depressing_, knowing how more and more toxic chemicals are being applied to soil, water, and plants every year....killing and poisoning all manner of insects and other creatures in ways we likely won't be informed of for years to come.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

Yes it is depressing. Until the mites showed up, TM was the only thing we needed to keep bees going. Fumidil was available but we didn't use it. Heck we didn't even own feeders in those days.The mites changed everything.
Farmers are in the same boat with new pests coming all the time.I can't blame them for trying to stay ahead of the pests.But as pesticide use has increased, we have seen more problems with our bees, problems that may be related to that. I don't know,its hard to nail down.


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## BEES4U (Oct 10, 2007)

Pesticide applied in total pounds per year:
Here's California's report for 2006 and 2007
http://www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/pur/pur07rep/lbsby_co_07.pdf
Fresno County ranks 1st two years in a row with fewer pounds in 2007.

Ernie


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## Omie (Nov 10, 2009)

BEES4U said:


> Pesticide applied in total pounds per year:
> Here's California's report for 2006 and 2007
> http://www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/pur/pur07rep/lbsby_co_07.pdf
> Fresno County ranks 1st two years in a row with fewer pounds in 2007.
> Ernie


Oh my god.


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

That's why I'm in the condition I'm in. Lived in Fresno county most of my life.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

EPA pesticide fact sheet for spirotetramat

http://www.epa.gov/opprd001/factsheets/spirotetramat.pdf


OPPTS Guideline 850.3040; Field Testing for Pollinators
Despite that the intrinsic hazard potential to bees based on the acute oral and
contact studies with honey bees appears to be low, brood feeding tests with
bees and acute toxicity contact studies with other non-target insects (e.g.
parasitoid wasps and predatory mites) conducted at less than the maximum
application rate suggest there is potential for mortality in adults and pupae,
massive perturbation of brood development, and early brood termination as a
result of spirotetramat use. This information, coupled with the fact that two
other chemicals representing the ketoenole class of compounds
(spiromesifen and spirodiclofen) have also demonstrated the potential for
chronic effects on bee broods and development while displaying low acute
toxicity, suggests that the mode of action of these compounds (i.e., inhibition
of lipid biosynthesis) may adversely affect bee broods and development.
Although a study has been submitted for spirotetramat under guideline
850.3040, it was conducted at application rates approximately half of the
label-recommended rates and it was not designed in such a manner that
adverse effects resulting from treatment could be statistically determined.
Therefore, it is recommended that a study design be developed in
collaboration with the Environmental Fate and Effects Division’s chemical
teams for spirotetramat, spiromesifen, and spirodiclofen, as well as with the
USDA Agricultural Research Service Bee Research Lab


End-Use Products:
This product is toxic to bees. Direct exposure to treatment or residues on blooming
crops or weeds can lead to effects on colonies. Do not apply this product or allow it
to drift if bees are visiting the treatment area.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

So it looks like this product could be deadly to brood,but the EPA went ahead and approved it anyway, before field trials were complete. Nice.


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

Guess we better be sure to register. 

I love it when the label says " do not apply while bees are foraging in the field." There are a few hot materials that volatilize in 2 or 3 hours but this sounds like a longer term toxicity.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

Right, if the yards are registered, they are supposed to call before spraying.Some actually do


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## Tom G. Laury (May 24, 2008)

So I wonder how that works with systemics...applied say three weeks before bloom, while the trees are dormant but taking up moisture and material. Or cotton, or alfalfa, for that matter. I doubt the PCA is required to notify as yet unregistered apiaries.


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## cow pollinater (Dec 5, 2007)

And all of this is information is based on what actually gets reported as aposed to what actually happens in the field. 
We're farmers to... It would be a tad bit hypocritical to blame growers for pulling out all the stops to kill their pests and reporting what the authorities want to hear when allot of us have been guilty of the same for years.


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## loggermike (Jul 23, 2000)

I am quite sure that if I had the gall to tell a farmer how to manage his pest problems, I would be politely told where I can put my bees....
So if a really bad pesticide is going to be turned loose on us, it has to be stopped at the EPA level. 
Having said that, it appears that field tests have been completed that show spirotetramat to not be as bad as it seemed . Bayers rep will be releasing the data at Orlando so hopefully some of you who are going can fill us in.
If a pesticide is safer for the bees than the ones used previously, then thats not all bad. Time will tell.....


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