[projekktor id=’14165′]

A study by the Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists has found most of Ontario’s bees aren’t surviving the winter, and pollen contaminated by pesticides may be to blame.

According to a new study, 60 per cent of the province’s honey bees died this year.

Brandi Lee McDonald manages a colony of over 25,000 bees at McMaster University and says the number of dead bees is very concerning.

She says exposure to neonicotinoid pesticides weakens hives, and cause bees to get lost in the cold.

“It messes with the brain, with their ability to know where they’re going and find their way back to the hive. They go several kilometers every day to collect pollen and nectar and they use navigation based on the sun and other cues in nature to find their back to the hive,” said McDonald.

She says her own bees haven’t been affected by the pesticides, because they aren’t used anywhere nearby. However, she says her other bees in more agricultural areas have suffered.

The Ontario Beekeepers’ Association wants the Ontario government to fast-track a plan to restrict the number of seed crops treated with the harmful chemicals.