Varroa (Varroa jacobsoni and V. destructor) is considered to be one of the most serious pests affecting honey bees worldwide. Until recently, Australia was the last major beekeeping country free of this pest. In June 2022, Varroa destructor was detected in surveillance hives in Newcastle, New South Wales (NSW). This resulted in a 15-month long eradication response that was ultimately unsuccessful. On 19 September 2023, the National Management Group (NMG) agreed that eradication of Varroa destructor was no longer technically feasible.
As a result of the NMG decision, a transition to management (T2M) program was developed and is currently being rolled out across the country. The program focuses on minimising the ongoing effects of Varroa while slowing the spread and educating beekeepers on Varroa management. For more information on the program, including access to online learning and webinars, see the National Varroa Mite Management Program webpage.
Description
Varroa mites are external parasites of European honey bees.
Adult females are reddish-brown in colour, shaped like a scallop shell and about 1.1 mm long and 1.7 mm wide.
Adult males are smaller than their female counterparts in size and yellow-white in colour.
Both sexes have eight legs.
Varroa eggs are 0.5 mm long and milky-coloured.
Varroa destructor on bee pupa
Photo: Gilles San Martin Wikimedia Commons
Surveillance
Hives should be monitored for varroa using one of three main methods:
sugar shaking, alcohol washing, and soapy water washing.
More information on each of the monitoring methods, including instructional videos, can be found here: Monitoring — National Varroa Mite Management Program
Negative Reporting
Negative reporting helps to provide further assurance that the mite has not entered Tasmania. Please use the diary entry function in BeeTAS to report your external mite checks, even if you do not find any suspect mites.
For further instruction on creating a diary entry in BeeTAS, refer to the
BeeTAS User Guide.
Suspect Varroa
Varroa mites are a notifiable pest in Tasmania, which means if you suspect you have found signs of this pest in your hives, you must report it.
It is important that beekeepers follow the below steps if Varroa is suspected in an apiary:
Collect a specimen of the suspect Varroa mite and place it in a small jar of methylated spirits. Keep the jar in a cool, safe place away from sunlight. Do not mail or forward any samples until advised to do so by a Biosecurity Tasmania Officer. Never take live specimens away from the apiary as this may spread Varroa.
Reassemble the opened hive to its normal position.
Mark the hive with a waterproof felt pen (or similar) so it can be easily identified. Mark the lid and all boxes of the hive with the same identification.
Thoroughly wash hands, gloves (and gauntlets), hive tool, smoker and any other equipment to ensure Varroa is not carried from the apiary.
Place protective clothes, gloves, veil, bee brush and hat in plastic bag and leave them at the apiary site until advised by a Biosecurity Tasmania Officer.
Before leaving the apiary, inspect your vehicle to make sure there are no bees trapped in or on the radiator. Check the tray of the truck, ute or trailer as well. Boxes of combs and other hive material must be left at the apiary to avoid moving bees from the apiary.
Call the
Exotic Plant Pest Hotline (1800 084 881) or
Biosecurity Tasmania (03 6165 3777) to report.
Impacts of Varroa
Tasmania is currently Varroa-free. If Varroa were to enter and establish in Tasmania, the impacts to commercial beekeepers, recreational beekeepers, home gardeners, and pollination dependent horticultural and agricultural industries would be significant. The establishment of Varroa in Tasmania has the potential to reduce wild populations by around 95% as has been observed in other countries, thereby eliminating the free pollination services provided to horticultural/agricultural industries and home gardeners from wild honey bee colonies throughout the state.
To prevent the entry of Varroa, restrictions on the import of bees, apiary products and used apiary equipment are in place. For more information on these restrictions, see the General Biosecurity Direction.