Among the afflictions that drive down honeybee populations, the blood-sucking Varroa mite, which weakens and shortens the life of bees, usually is at the top of the list. A paper in the journal Environmental Entomology says the mite takes advantage of bee industry practices, such as placing colonies near each other and preventing colonies from dividing, to multiply in a hive and to spread to other hives, reports Growing Produce, a specialty crop publication.
The lead author of the research, Gloria DeGrandi-Hoffman, said beekeepers should treat the parasitic mite as a migratory pest, rather than the traditional view that it is relatively immobile. “This research provides evidence that the tried and true ways of controlling Varroa are no longer feasible and that new methods that are designed for control of a migratory pest are required,” said DeGrandi-Hoffman, of USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. Bees are vital pollinators for dozens of crops.
Growing Produce said, “The mite’s ability to hitchhike on wandering bees, the infections it transmits to bees, and the density of colonies in managed beekeeping settings, make for a deadly combination.” Beekeepers locate hives close together, which means that foraging bees may wander into a neighboring hive and bring a mite with it as a new resident. Because beekeepers prevent colonies from “swarming” — i.e. dividing — they deprive bees of a tool to reduce the level of mite infestations and their damage.