[beemandan]

A good varroa lecture by University of Sheffield PhD candidate Ricarda Kather. It is 45 minutes long but very informative and well done.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE4emUMyOWs

 

[rwlaw]

Thanx! Gotta watch the whole thing, I would've named it boogeyman in the hive tho LOL.

 

[beemandan]

I would've named it boogeyman in the hive tho LOL.

It is interesting that varroa produce a beelike pheromone which results in the bees' failure to detect them as nest invaders.

 

[tacomabees]

Good presentation and information on life cycle and VM's capability to infect a hive.....My question is what do I do different based on the information in this presentation for mite management than what is current practice?....Chemical Treatment, brood breaks, Hygienic genetics, powdered sugar?

Little buggers, Kill them all!

 

[WLC]

Good presentation and information on life cycle and VM's capability to infect a hive.....My question is what do I do different based on the information in this presentation for mite management than what is current practice?....Chemical Treatment, brood breaks, Hygienic genetics, powdered sugar? Little buggers, Kill them all!

If you recall the experiments where the effects of methyl alkanes where examined, and how the lipid layer on Varroa can 'take in' bee odors, it does suggest something to me.

Methyl alkanes are a type of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME).

You can make similar compounds by using Crisco, alcohol (denatured), and a catalyst.

I have read research on FAME and fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE) as being involved in signaling Varroa to enter a brood cell before it is capped.

The idea of using synthetic FAEEs and FAMEs (homemade biodiesel) would be to 'jam' the Varroa's odor recognition/mimicry system.

 

[beemandan]

what do I do different based on the information in this presentation for mite management than what is current practice

For anyone who already understands the varroa lifecycle...probably nothing in their strategy changes. It simply adds to our understanding of the enemy. And the accumulation of knowledge (hopefully), in the long haul, helps us to deal with them.

 

[WLC]

She did mention that existing odor producing genes could be reactivated in Varroa using RNAi.

She also referenced the difference in the natural static charge between the Honeybee and Varroa. I have picked out Varroa mites from debris using a charged 'wand' in the past.

So, perhaps this is how powdered sugar works to knock off Varroa mites, by static charge. Maybe an odor can be added to the powdered sugar so that the bees can 'smell' the mites?