The potential impacts of varroa mite on Australia are being realised as a feral bee die-off is predicted, potentially leading to increased production costs for farmers who relied on them for pollination.

Key points:

  • A New Zealand researcher says varroa mite caused feral bees to die-off within two seasons
  • An infestation of 9,000 varroa mites has been detected in a Central Coast feral bee swarm
  • Swarms are being caught to help amateur beekeepers restock
  • AutoTL;DRBEnglish
    4•1 year ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Varroa mite has forced the euthanasia of hundreds of millions of European honeybees by authorities since it was detected at the Port of Newcastle in June last year.

    While a transition from eradication of the deadly parasitic mite to management will enable beekeepers to treat infested hives, feral bees in Australia are expected to vanish, possibly within three years.

    “As soon as that varroa mite comes through, you end up in a situation where, without some sort of treatment, those hives aren’t going to survive any kind of adverse events,” he said.

    Authorities in New South Wales have detected an infestation of 9,000 varroa mites on a feral bee swarm on the Central Coast.

    Deputy incident controller Shannon Mulholland said mites had been detected predominantly in wild colonies within the Hunter and Central Coast, where there were a large number of infested properties.

    Dr Mulholland recommended against beekeepers catching swarms in the varroa mite management zones.

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