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Researchers Uncover Bumblebee Queen's Preference for Pesticide-Laden Soil During Hibernation Introduction New research form the University of Guelph raises serious concerns about bumblebee health and re productive viability. Drs. Nigel Raine and Sabrina Rondeau have found that bumblebee queens  prefer to hibernate in  pesticide-contaminated soil, an unex pected soil, an unex pected behaviour that remains  poorly understood. Research Objective Investigating Bumblebee Queen's Behaviour 'We aimed to ex plore whether bumblebee queens demonstrate avoidance behaviours to lessen their risk of  pesticide ex posure, as some behaviours are still not well understood,' Raine states. 'The findings, however, were alarming.' Methodology Field Ex periments Conducted The research team carried out field ex periments, allowing newly emerged queens of the common eastern bumblebee (Bombus im ptiens ) to fly freely in outdoor enclosures, mate, and select a hibernation site for the wi...