Growing levels of air pollution from power plants and automobiles have reduced the potency of flower fragrances by up to 90 percent as compared with pre-industrial levels in the United States, a new study has found.

The trend is unpleasant for human noses, but may be life-threatening for pollinators such as bees and butterflies.

“Many insects find flowers by detecting the scent produced by those flowers,” said study lead author Jose D. Fuentes, an environmental scientist at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

“This pollution makes it increasingly difficult for pollinators to locate the flowers and feed on their nectar.”

Flowers also stand to suffer when this symbiotic relationship falters.

If insects can’t find enough flower-based food to survive, their movements won’t pollinate plant species.

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