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AMERICAN FOULBROOD IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Keywords: Cape honey bee, disease control, hive quarantine, South Africa
Despite strict controls, non-irradiated honey or honey bee products found a way into South Africa. On 25 February 2009 the
Agricultural Research Council Plant Protection Research Institute (ARC-PPRI) confirmed an outbreak of American foulbrood (AFB) in certain Western Cape honey bee colonies. Mike Allsopp, Head of the Honey Bee Research Section of the ARC-PPRI, became aware of the
disease is to burn the entire hive and contents and bury the ashes - infected apiaries could face standstill orders of up to 18 months and will need help and compensation to ensure
their continued viability and co-operation.
Allsopp said commercial beekeepers are more likely to comply with rigorous elimination of infected hives, but smaller hobbyists may be reluctant to report outbreaks and the issue could go underground. The solution will
depend largely on the action of beekeepers and If ali beekeepers adhere to DoA advice
disease when a local beekeeper experienced problems with unhealthy colonies. The disease
the DoA.
was first thought to be European foulbrood, which affected Western Cape apiaries in 2008,
quarantined and destroyed, they couid prevent its spread and a permanent battle. The disease could destroy thousands of colonies, lead to
but atypical samples were sent to PPRI’s laboratory in Pretoria anc tested positive for
until the disease has been effectively
poor pollination of crops and orchards, and ruin
ABB.
beekeepers.
dohn Moodie, the South African Bee Industry Organisation (SABIO) Chairperson, said that
As South African bees are classified under
four beekeeping operations in the Western Cape had confirmed AFB in their colonies. The extent
“he
infestation is still unknown as the
_ Iptoms are slow to appear and further Surveys are needed. The Department of
Agriculture (DoA) urged all beekeepers to act with extreme caution, keep colonies and apiaries apart, not to move honey bees from
‘plant health’ there is need to amend current legislation to allow for containment of the
disease. The DoA has established a management team and initiated an interim plan which could see infected apiaries issued with an initial standstill period of up to three months. “The outbreak is being reported to the World
apiary to apiary, and to treat all beekeeping equipment as contaminated. Although the four
approval”, said DoA spokesperson Priscilla Tsotso Sehoole.
contaminated apiaries are co-operating with authorities - the only way to eradicate the
Haylee Robbins, Farming UK More information www.sabio.org.za
USA SURVEYS HONEY BEE LOSSES Keywords: CCD, disease control, pollination Honey bee colony losses across the USA were
sudden, complete absence of honey bees in a colony. The cause of CCD is still unknown.
approximately 29% from all causes from September 2008 to April 2009, according to a survey conducted by the Apiary Inspectors of
As this was an interview-based survey, if is not possible to differentiate between verifiable cases of CCD and colonies lost as the result of other causes that share the ‘absence of dead bees’ as a symptom. However, among beekeepers that reported any colonies
America (AIA) and the US Department of riculture (USDA). This is less than the overall iusses of about 36% from 2007 to 2008, and
32% from 2006 to 2007, that were reported in similar Surveys.
“While the reduction in colony losses is encouraging, this magnitude of loss is economically unsustainable for commercial beekeeping,” said Jeff Pettis, research leader of the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Bee Research Laboratory in Beltsville, the USDA's principal scientific research agency. The survey was conducted by Jeff Pettis, Dennis van Engelsdorp, AIA President, and Jerry Hayes,
AIA past President. About 26% of apiaries surveyed reported that some of their colonies died of colony collapse disorder (CCD), down from 36% 2007-2008. CCD is characterised by the
of apiaries in
*
Organisation for Animal Health and draft regulations have been forwarded for ministerial
collapsing without the presence of dead bees, each lost an average of 32% of their colonies in 2008-2009, while apiaries that did not lose any bees with symptoms of CCD lost an average 26% of their colonies. To strengthen the beekeeping industry, ARS recently began a five-year, area wide research
programme to improve honey bee health, survivorship and pollination. Honey bee
pollination is critical to agriculture, adding more than US$15 (€1) billion to the value of
American crops each year. The survey covered approximately 20% of the USA’s 2.3 million
colonies.
Kim Kaplan, ARS News Service (View this report plus photos at www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr) 7
approximate weights
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