A new study says glyphosate, the world’s most widely used herbicide and one long touted as harmless to animals, might be taking a toll on honey bees. The chemical appears to disrupt the microbial community in the bees’ digestive system, making them more vulnerable to infection. The findings add a new factor to a constellation of potential reasons for the decline of honey bees witnessed in recent years, says Gene Robinson, a honey bee geneticist at Illinois.
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