How To Sugar Shake Your Bees To Check For Varroa Mites In Victoria, Australia

Varroa mites in Australia.

To date, Australia remains free of the parasitic mite, Varroa destructor, which has spread rapidly across the rest of the globe since the early 1960s. The mite can reproduce in European Honey Bee drone and worker brood and has decimated bee colonies wherever the two species have come into contact. European Honey Bees (Apis mellifera) have little natural defence against the mite, and although some control measures have been successful, these focus on reduction rather than eradication, and the mites remain a serious threat. Some sense of the devastating scale of the potential impact of Varroa mites in this country can be deduced from the fact that honey bees are instrumental in contributing $4-6 billion to our economy every year. In addition to the production of honey, a large percentage of commercial crops are reliant upon the bees for pollination.

[IFarmBugs]

The state always thinks it knows best doesn't it. Luckily here in the US the fine for not having your apiary (1-50 hives) inspected is $5/year but no one even pays the fine HA. This will change sooner than later though. Current legislature paints a bleak picture for private beekeeping operations here, I suspect in the future only major corporations with special licenses will be permitted to keep bees and further monopolize the food industry.

[lintonmacnamara]

Well presented..could be very valuable information if NSW OUTBREAK spreads to Qld