Threshold level

[Flewster]

What is the mite threshold level..........and what are the best methods to test to see if your near the threshold level and need treatment....



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You have to stop and smell the roses......but please watch out for my bees.

[Michael Bush]

I don't know of any firm mite thresholds. Different books say different things. Mite levels in the fall are always higher than mite levels in the summer. A 24 hour drop on a booming hive is usually (all other things being equal) going to be higher than a small hive for the same infestation level of mites.

On my hives that are small cell and handling the mites well, I typically don't see more than 3 or 4 mites and sometimes less, drop in 24 hours in the fall when there are a lot of mites. But I've seen large cell hives with drops of 30 or 40 in 24 hours winter fine. More than that worries me. But 30 or 40 in a small hive is a lot. 30 to 40 in the summer is a lot more serious than 30 to 40 in the fall. I also like to open some capped drone brood now and then. If it's mostly clean (an occasional mite in an occasional drone cell) I think they are doing well. If every drone cell has three or four adult mites in it, that worries me.

Usually when the mites get the upper hand the population of mites explodes. If you're watching trends of the count you'll see this happen.

Sorry I don't have anything more definitive to offer. Perhaps others will share their ideas on the subject.


[This message has been edited by Michael Bush (edited September 27, 2004).]

[Robert Brenchley]

The figure varies pretty wildly according to who you talk to. It has to vary according to the time of year as well; 30 mites a day in summer would have me panicking. At this time of year, I wouldn't worry so much, since the mitefall goes up as the broodnest shrinks. The thing is to monitor mitefall over time, and see how your bees cope. If the mitefall starts increasing rapidly, or you see bees with viral symptoms like shrivelled wings, that's the time to panic.

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Regards,

Robert Brenchley

RSBrenchley@aol.com
Birmingham UK