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PHOTOS: COURTESY OF NATIONAL HONEY BOARD
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Mites give bees a run for their
honey.
by Joyce Yeung
Imagine a world without bees. Now imagine that same world
without flowers, without honey, without strawberry plants.
What most of us don't realize and what beekeepers have been
saying all along is that the fate of this tiny buzzing
insect affects us in many inexplicable ways. Next time a
bee advances annoyingly close to you, don't swat at it. The
sad truth is: wild bees are in trouble.
The decrease in bee populations is in no way sudden. What
has been an ongoing problem is the result of an attack by
two predominant types of mites: varroa mites ( V.
Jacobsoni ) and tracheal mites ( A. Woodi ).
While beekeepers have had some measured success in mite
controls, it is the wild honeybees that are suffering the
greatest loss.
The smallest of the two mites is the tracheal mite. It
lives in the breathing tubes of adult honeybees and sucks
their blood, causing adult bees to become disoriented and
weak. The best known control for tracheal mites is a
menthol treatment in the spring when the weather is warm
and in late summer or fall of the year immediately
following honey extraction. For a homemade treatment,
enclose fifty grams (1.8 oz.) of crystalline menthol in a
7" x 7" plastic screen bag or equally porous material and
place inside the colony for 20-25 days. If daytime
temperature does not exceed 80° F, menthol should be
placed on the top bars of the colony; during hot weather,
it is better to place it on the bottom board. There should
be no honey supers on the hive during the treatment, and
the menthol should be taken out of a colony at least a
month before any anticipated flow.
The varroa mite, originating in Asia, has spread to almost
all parts of the world and is especially destructive to
honeybee colonies. The adult female mites attach to the bee
between the abdominal segments or body regions, and so are
difficult to detect. The varroa mite attacks bees at their
pupae, larvae, and adult stages, causing deformities like
shortened abdomens, misshapen wings, and deformed legs, and
eventually leading to death. Beekeepers are currently
fighting the varroa mite with Apistan chemical strips
placed in the hive at set times of the year.
What the toll of the mites means to consumers is the
reduction of many valuable crops and a dramatic rise in
honey prices. Honeybees pollinate some 90 different crops
in the U.S. including melons, squash, broccoli, almonds,
strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries. An estimated
one third of the world food supply depends on insect
pollination, either directly or indirectly. As the bee
population decreases, many fruits or vegetables might be of
such poor quality or low quantity that they will disappear
from supermarkets.
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