Biosecurity

Miticide Resistance And How To Avoid It

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Extracts From The AHBIC January newsletter Do you know what miticide resistance is? Miticide resistance happens when some Varroa mites carry genetic traits that make them less likely to be killed by a specific chemical treatment. Within any mite population, there is natural variation — a few indi-viduals may, by chance, have genetic differences (e.g., … Read more

Let’s Stop Sugar Coating It: The Powdered Sugar Shake Is Not Harmless

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By Mike Allerton The powdered sugar shake has been widely promoted as the gentler option for monitoring Varroa destructor, especially among hobbyist beekeepers who feel uneasy about killing a small sample of bees in an alcohol or soapy water wash. For years, the assumption has been that bees walk away unharmed after being dusted with … Read more

Two Grams Good, Four Grams Better1

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By Andrew Wootton We would all prefer to stick to the organic miticides. However, I’d like to discuss problems with the use of Api-Bioxal that limit its effectiveness. I’m not here to criticise the government (indeed, I’ve been proud to play my own small part in the varroa response and will continue doing everything I … Read more

Storm Clouds Gather

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By Andrew Wootton With several varroa detections in metropolitan Melbourne and the Victorian varroa heat map looking like a Christmas pudding, we can safely assume that you either already have mites in your hive or will have this season.So it was encouraging to attend the Melbourne Section club meeting on the 29th January and see … Read more

Resistance Revisited

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Andrew Wootton First the bad news I wrote of the dangers of miticide resistance developing in Australia in December’s ABJ.[1]  Alarmingly, resistance to Bayvarol has already been reported from NSW in the AHBIC News of 11th February[2] and now on the 27th February, a further occurrence in Queensland is announced.[3] With the NSW mites, pyrethroid … Read more

New Varroa Treatment Approved

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An emergency permit has been issued for Aluen CAP, an oxalic acid treatment which is applied using cellulose strips. There are no temperature limitations listed for this treatment and it can be used when honey supers are present. The treatment period is 42 days. The treatment level is four strips per eight to ten frame … Read more