Mites Killing Bees

19 years ago

Saw this today on my Comcast Homepage...I didn't realize they knew it was a mite that was killing all of the bees.

Destructive Mite Threatens Hawaii Bees

By TARA GODVIN, Associated Press Writer

Thu Apr 26, 4:24 AM

HONOLULU - A tiny mite that has devastated mainland honeybee populations showed up in Honolulu hives for the first time this month and has now been confirmed in bee colonies across Oahu.

The infestation by varroa mites has led the state to ask beekeepers to restrict transport of bees around the islands. There are concerns it could threaten the Big Island's thriving queen bee export industry, which has so far tested free of the mites.

"This is going to be for us a nightmare," said Michael Kliks, head of the Hawaii Beekeepers' Association and owner of Manoa Honey Co. "When I saw that mite I knew exactly what it was. I knew exactly what it meant and I fell to my knees and almost began to weep because it's inexpressible what that sea change is for us in Hawaii."

The parasites are blamed for destroying more than half of some mainland beekeepers' hives and wiping out most wild honeybees there.

Kliks discovered the mites April 6 on a pupa contained in an abandoned hive he recovered from the Makiki section of Honolulu and immediately notified state agriculture officials.

Since then the mites have been confirmed in hives in Waimanalo, Ewa, Kunia, Kahaluu and Punaluu.

Hives are still being checked elsewhere on Oahu but it is too late to hope to eradicate or even contain the infestation, Kliks said.

"The only thing we can try and do is keep the levels of infestation in our managed colonies below what's called the threshold level ... so that we can still produce honey. But keeping it at that level will certainly require quite regular, heavy application of permitted pesticides," he said.

That may mean the end of certified organic honey production on the island.

The appearance of the mites could also hurt island crops that depend on wild bees for pollination, such as coffee, macadamia nuts and pumpkins, Kliks said.

Originally from Asia, varroa mites were first discovered in Wisconsin and Florida in 1987. By the next year, the mites were found in 12 states and have since spread throughout the continental U.S.

The pinhead-sized insects, which are spread through contact between bees, feed off the blood of honeybee adults, larvae and pupae.

Bees cannot legally be imported into Hawaii, and officials do not know how the mites made it to the state.

Beekeepers are being asked not to move their bees between islands or even within the same island. Once authorities have confirmed where the mites have spread, they can then work on a possible quarantine for bees throughout the state, said Janelle Saneishi, spokeswoman for the state Department of Agriculture.

"But you know a bee flies. So that's the wild card," she said.

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Comments (5)

minawink
19 years ago
The mites have been in the continental US since 1987 and are the probably the biggest reason why there are so few feral honey bee colonies. Varroa has only just made it's way to Hawaii. Varroa may be part of the current problem but it has not been determined that these mites are the cause of the recent decline in the honey bee population.
york_rose
19 years ago
Yes, these mites (and also the much smaller tracheal mites) have been devastating to honey bee hives on the mainland. I'm surprised it took this long for them to get to Hawaii. The mites coevolved with the honey bee native to the Orient, Apis cerana, which tolerates them, but "regular" honey bees (Apis mellifera) have no resistance or tolerance.

Varroa mites are small, but not in relation to the size of a honey bee. It would kind of be like having a rat sitting on your shoulder, sucking out your blood, and you having no ability to grab the thing and get rid of it.

Tracheal mites are much smaller, and block the breathing holes of the bees. They also cause real problems.

On the other hand, honey bees aren't native to the Americas in the first place....
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claireplymouth z6b coastal MA
19 years ago
york rose said:

"On the other hand, honey bees aren't native to the Americas in the first place...."

I didn't know this! Are there native bees that perform the same function? And are they resistant to the mites?

Claire
york_rose
19 years ago
None that are manipulated in the exact same way, but we only ever teach each other that the only bee that can do this work is the honey bee. We never teach each other that one of the New England tribes (don't know which) called them "white man's flies" - because they were. The colonists introduced them.

Humans lived on this continent for at least ten millenia without ever knowing honey bees even existed because there were none here, only in the old world where the bees come from. The honey bee is native to western Asia, Europe, and most especially Africa. There are somewhere between three and seven other species of bees in the same genus (Apis), but all of those are in Asia (including the Philippines, so you have to define "Asia" loosely).

There are many, many species of bees native to the US (including many in the honey bee family, but in a different genus - Bombus, the bumble bees), but none of them make beeswax or honey in a manner that allows it to be extracted from the hive.

Then again, if you talk to a beekeeper you'll rapidly learn that beeswax and honey aren't worth much in this country.

Regarding honey bees' pollination skills, there are actually bees that are better at pollinating some crops. Honey bees are so bad about alfalfa that those farmers long ago gave up depending on honey bees. Many or most now depend on other species for pollination. Apple growers have to put in extra hives when the trees bloom because when you put a honey bee hive in a blooming apple orchard most of the foragers ignore the apple blossoms and spend most of their time on the blooming dandelions under the trees!

Honey bees are also reluctant pollinators of blueberries and cranberries.
ellen_s
19 years ago
Our native bees are also in big trouble. Their numbers have declined by something like 90% in the past few decades. Habitat loss and pesticide use are the main causes. They are the workhorses that pollinate our flowering plants and trees and without them, our landscape would be much different. With managed honeybees at risk and our feral bees in decline, this is potentially very alarming to society because something like 1/3 of our food supply requires pollination.