| Small hive beetle found in Aussie bees |
| A beetle that
could devastate the Australian beekeeping industry has now been
found in two areas - New South Wales and Queensland. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization said honey production and hive management in Australia could change forever after confirmation of the arrival of the small hive beetle, Aethina tumida. The pest is endemic in South Africa and the United States. It was found in bee colonies located in Richmond, New South Wales. "Larvae of the small hive beetle are most damaging to honey bees," said CSIRO bee project leader Denis Anderson. "They tunnel through combs, eating honey and pollen and killing bee brood, completely ruining the combs. "Bees may abandon combs and entire colonies once they become affected," he said. "Worse, the larvae defecate in honey promoting fermentation. Fermented honey cannot be used by industry, is abandoned by bees, and must be destroyed." The small hive beetle is native to South Africa, where it is regarded as a minor pest of African strains of honey bees. However, in the United States, where the beetle was first discovered in 1998, it has become a significant pest. Australia now is only the second New World country to which the beetle has spread. The effect of the beetle in Australia is likely to be similar to that in the U.S., as the climate and bee strains in Australia are similar. "This means a complete change to the way hives are managed and honey harvested," Anderson said. "If the incursion cannot be reversed, it will be a significant issue and a major cost for Australia's beekeepers." Primary Industries Minister Henry Palaszczuk said two aparies in the Beerwah State Forest, about 80 kilometres north of Brisbane were quarantined after the suspected discovery of the small hive beetle. "Wider surveillance is being carried out to determine if the pest is present in the immediate area and elsewhere in Queensland," he said. The discovery was made after NSW Agriculture traced the movement of hive material from a suspect site near Sydney to an apiary in Beerwah. Palaszczuk said the Consultative Committee on Emergency Animal Diseases has met and agreed to form a working group comprising DPI staff, NSW Agriculture, the federal department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Australia, CSIRO and bee industry members to determine the extent of infestation. The Queensland government received immediate Executive Council approval to amend regulations making the beetle a declared pest which allows the DPI to enforce quarantine and other regulatory controls, such as destruction orders. There are 80,000 commercial hives in Queensland producing on annual average 75 kilograms a hive of honey. The Queensland bee industry produces honey, beeswax, honeycomb, queen bee exports and pollination services. The 6,000 tonnes of honey produced by Queensland hives each year are valued at A$24 million. Beeswax production is estimated at 100 tonnes a year, valued at A$450,000. Queen bee exports of 20,000 queen bees at A$15 each represent A$300,000 to the industry annually. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Kim Flottum Editor, Bee Culture Magazine http://www.airoot.com/beeculture/index.htm |