neonicotinoid
/ˌniːə(ʊ)ˈnɪkətɪnɔɪd
/noun
A systemic agricultural insecticide resembling nicotine: studies have found a link between neonicotinoids and declining bee populations...
- Goulson and his colleagues exposed developing bumblebee colonies to a neonicotinoid called imidacloprid in doses comparable to what they might find in the wild.
- A team at Scotland's University of Stirling fed bee colonies with doses of imidacloprid, a neonicotinoid used on maize and oilseed rape.
- A new breed of insecticides known as the neonicotinoids has been grabbing headlines recently; research indicates links to the collapse of honeybee colonies.
Origin
1990s: from neo- + nicotinoid, a type of compound chemically related to nicotine.