Deadly varroa mite threatens half of Canberra’s beehives

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The honeybee killing pest varroa mite is spreading in the ACT with experts predicting it will wipe out half of the territory's beehives. The mite was first detected in the ACT in April, but authorities have now had eight cases reported and expect that number to rise quickly.

Transcript

00:00Beekeeping is just a hobby for many Canberrans, but the arrival of the Varroa mite means they'll

00:07need to take it more seriously.

00:09Once Varroa is in your hive, it can devastate your hive within two, three months.

00:15Confirmed cases of the parasite are rising and experts say it will be in half of the

00:19ACT's 6,000 hives within a year.

00:23It's not a matter of if.

00:24Varroa will go through, will be in every hive in the Canberra region within a two year window.

00:29Looking at other countries that have dealt with Varroa, we're looking at losing 50% of

00:37our hives here in Canberra.

00:40Hives can survive with Varroa but need to be properly managed.

00:43Biosecurity officials are asking beekeepers to register their hives to receive information

00:49on the best way to protect them.

00:51If you don't know what you're doing, you'll probably lose your hive.

00:54Small methods include using soft and hard chemicals or physically removing the mites.

00:59Yeah, this is one of the methods, primary methods I use, which is a mechanical approach

01:04for controlling Varroa.

01:05Varroa would show up as like a red, like a, same size as a sesame seed.

01:11A reduced bee population will mean less pollination for fruit trees and vegetable patches causing

01:17small yields or deformed fruit.

01:20You may get some vegetables and some fruit, but I think it will be impacted to some degree.

01:26Experts predict the bees will evolve to develop a resistance to Varroa.

01:30If we're smart about what we do and how we manage Varroa, we'll emerge out of this with

01:35more knowledge and better bees.

01:37Hives that survive the next two years will help to rebuild the Territory's bee population,

01:42but a return to current levels could take five years.

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