Did Anyone Get Packages From Georgia & Have Varroa or Other Problems?

[Bob D]

I'm new to beekeeping and I got my first package this year. It seems that I may be infested with varroa mites already.

A couple people have said the bees may have been infected when I got them. Another person said they got packages from Georgia and are having similar problems.

I saw a CBS News clip the other day stating the Varroa Mite has wiped up 50% of the hives up the east coast to New Jersey. 75% In California.

I'm wondering if the Hives in Georgia were already infested with the mite before they sent out their packages.

Has anyone else had problems with bees they got this year from Georgia?

[SantaCruzBee]

Pretty much all packages will have some Varroa these days, especially as the chemical controls are failing.

[Bob Harrison]

Bob D.,
Infested packages from many areas has been an ongoing problem for the last three years. Several possible solutions have been talked about on the receiving end. Dipping or spraying the package with sucrocide has been talked about or treating after hiving with a treatment which still works in your area. We used to say a package did not need treatment for varroa the first year. Not now!

Varroa control on a large scale is problematic right now. Many beekeepers are poo pooing the news reports of huge varroa losses. I will not argue. They can believe what they like but I have personally seen the deadouts in Florida, Texas & California.

My opinion and research done for us in England point to virus problems caused by varroa control dropping into the 70% & lower range. Once your comb is contaminated by virus spores then your virus woes start again with the next package of bees.
Parasitic Mite syndrum (PMS) is usually only seen when varroa infestations reach high levels. Comb on which bees have crashed showing signs of PMS keep those spores similar to nosema spores.

waiting to start another virus problem when enough varroa are present in the hive to vector the problem.

The conclusion of research in England was to keep varroa control at as high a level as possible to keep varroa levels low enough to prevent PMS.

Actually we knew the above before the samples were sent but nice to confirm our thoughts.