BEEKEEPING
OA
&
DEVELOPMENT 46
COURSES HONEYBEE PATHOLOGY
How to controi it
10-14 August 1998 Cardiff University
During the last 20 years, the Varroa mite has destroyed wild populations of Apis mellifera honeybees and has threatened beekeeping industries. Scientists have undertaken spectacular amounts of research on the mite, and how to control it. In many ways the mite has revitalised honeybee research and stimulated funding and employment. But we still have no final answers on how to control Varroa.
In 1998 Bees for Development is offering this new course, run in
The best answer would have been for beekeepers not to continue moving infested honeybees from one country to another. There is no single method that is totally effective in controlling Varroa.
The standard method of Varroa treatment in the
USA is using fluvalinate Fluvalinate is a synthetic pyrethroid which is harmless to bees, but cannot be used whilst bees are producing honey otherwise the honey becomes contaminated. A further problem with fluvalinate is that the
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mites can develop resistance to it. Alternative control mechanisms are being
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investigated. Frank Eischen has .wdnd that smoke from certain plants either kills Varroa mites or causes
them to fall off the bees.
300-400 mite infested bees are put in a cage and the cage is covered with a plastic container. The smoke from the trial plant is puffed into the container which is then corked to prevent the smoke escaping.
Creosote bush smoke achieves a 90-100% mite knockdown after one minute but excessive exposure to the smoke harms the bees. “It is hard to find chemicals that remove mites without harming bees”, says Dr Eischen. “Grapefruit leaves however fit the description. After 30 seconds smoke from the grapefruit leaves knocked down 90-95% of the mites”.
Few of the mites are actually killed, most simply fall off the bees. “Either the smoke chemicals irritate or confuse the mites”, says Dr Eischen, “no-one is certain”. “But the good thing is that the leaf smoke does not seem to have any detrimental effects on the bees at
all”.
After 60 seconds the bees are removed and placed over sticky white card to catch any mites that fall off the bees. So far Dr Eischen has tested smoke from about
Dr Eischen is not recommending that beekeepers try these methods of control yet. “These findings are still preliminary and the active chemicals in the smoke are not yet
40 plants.
identified. What we are trying to do is isolate and identify the chemicals which are acting as miticides” he explains.
The first smoke Dr Eischen tested was from the ‘creosote’ bush, following a recommendation by a Mexican beekeeper, David Cardoso. The creosote bush is native to Mexico and Texas.
A Bees for Development publication
This information is taken from an article written by Sean Adams in Agricultural Research, August 1997, kindly provided by Dr Darrell Cox of Echo Inc.
conjunction with the School of Pure and Applied Biology at Cardiff University. The five days of study will cover many aspects of honey bee pathology including: Varroa (of course), foulbrood, honeybee viruses and other honeybee diseases. The course fee is 1150 inclusive of all course materials, fees and half board accommodation.
BEEKEEPING IN RURAL
DEVELOPMENT 16 August - 15 September
1998
Cardiff University and Niiro Wildlife Research Centre, Tanzania This four-week course provides two weeks in the United Kingdom; followed by two weeks of practical work with our partners at Njiro Wildlife Research Centre. The cost of this course, including return flights to Tanzania and half board accommodation for four weeks is 3938,
If you would like more details details of either course contact: Ms Glynis Hudson, Professional Development Centre, 51 Park Place, Cardiff University of Wales, Cardiff, CF1 3AT, United Kingdom Fax: (+44) 1222 874560 Email HudsonGD@cardiff.ac.uk or
Bees for Development
As you can
see, these courses have
been arranged so that students can
participate in both. Numbers of places on each course are limited. Book early to avoid disappointment.
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