Varroa mite

Australia 'the only major honey-producing country free from varroa mite', the most serious pest to honey bees worldwide.

The 50km biosecurity zone in place around the Port of Newcastle means beekeepers within the area must notify the department of the locations of their hives. Varroa mite was detected at the Port of Newcastle on Friday by the state Department of Primary Industries, which is now investigating potentially contaminated hives outside an initial 50km biosecurity zone. A property near Trangie in central western NSW will be inspected and containment and control activities will be carried out on Monday after hives near the Port of Newcastle were recently sent there.

There are fears that measures in place to stop the spread of a destructive parasite could devastate the bee industry and threaten honey and agriculture ...

"Now there's going to be a huge, huge shortage of hives going down to the almonds. The detections have triggered a halt on all movement of bees across New South Wales, hives within a 10-kilometre radius of the Port will also be destroyed. - The government has also ordered all hives within a 10-kilometre radius of the port to be destroyed

Bees have been sent into lockdown in one state to stop a dangerous parasite that could cost Australia $70m annually.

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An emergency order has been issued to stop the movement of bees across NSW after the deadly parasite varroa mite was discovered.

The 50-kilometre biosecurity zone in place around the Port of Newcastle means beekeepers within the area must notify the department of the locations of their hives. Varroa mite was detected at the Port of Newcastle on Friday by the state Department of Primary Industries. It is investigating potentially contaminated hives outside an initial 50-kilometre biosecurity zone. An emergency biosecurity zone has been imposed to stop the movement of bees across NSW after the deadly parasite varroa mite was discovered.

An outbreak of varroa mites have led to a statewide emergency order limiting the movement of bees across NSW. The varroa mite is an external parasitic mite ...

"Australia's very well prepared for it - we've had a lot of time to put protocols in place ... The odds are probably against us at this stage, but they're trying their best. The varroa mite is an external parasitic mite that attacks and feeds on honey bees, and can be devastating to colonies. "It's a day we've been dreading - as the only beekeeping country that hasn't had it. Journalist for the Area News in Griffith. RMIT graduate. This is how you can access our trusted content: Journalist for the Area News in Griffith. RMIT graduate.

Varroa Mite has been detected in Australia for the first time, locking down the beekeeping industry for two...

"There are many beekeepers out there who have signed contracts to move thousands of hives and now may not be able to - financially, it is going to be very hard for them." "For many beekeepers, this is where the bulk of their yearly income comes from," Mr Polie said. "It is going to cost the commercial industry a lot more to manage their hives," Mr McGann said. "The lockdown is a part of this management plan," he said. "Australia was the last country with a beekeeping industry to not have the parasite and now it's finally here." "We are the last country to have this happen," Mr Polie said.

Bees are being killed in one state to prevent a deadly threat that could cost Australia $70m a year. The measure is “so sad”, one beekeeper says.

A honeybee colony is all about the health of the whole colony, not the individual bee. It is about the whole Australian honeybee industry not our individual hives.” “This is hard and so sad. To stop beekeeping in Newcastle,” one of Urban Hum’s owners Anna Scobie wrote. “Now the most powerful way to protect the Australian honeybee industry is to say goodbye to our bees. A small beekeeping enterprise in the heart of Newcastle called Urban Hum will lose all 90 of its hives because it is in the 10km zone.

BEEKEEPERS in the Upper Hunter are facing a nervous wait for updates following the detection of a deadly parasite at hives near the Port of Newcastle last ...

This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: Varroa is not seen as a threat to native bees.) Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement

Varroa Mite has been detected in Australia for the first time, locking down the beekeeping industry for two...

"There are many beekeepers out there who have signed contracts to move thousands of hives and now may not be able to - financially, it is going to be very hard for them." "For many beekeepers, this is where the bulk of their yearly income comes from," Mr Polie said. "It is going to cost the commercial industry a lot more to manage their hives," Mr McGann said. "The lockdown is a part of this management plan," he said. "Australia was the last country with a beekeeping industry to not have the parasite and now it's finally here." "We are the last country to have this happen," Mr Polie said.

The mite feeds on honeybees, leading to malformation and weakening. If untreated it could cause an entire colony to die.

“Chances are that the mite will decimate the feral population, with benefits for many of Australia’s native ecosystems.” We need to plant food for bees for when the crop is not in flower – [for example] wildflower strips along crops.” “It absconds very quickly – it has small colonies and is quickly moving. “Those other bees need support in the landscape. The mite is a known vector for at least five honeybee viruses. Hogendoorn said the mite was, damagingly, a vector and incubator of honeybee viruses. “Six years later it was all over the north and south island. So the potential impact is very significant,” Schouten said. “What ends up happening over time is that the more the bees become weak, their life span is reduced and so there’s less bees collecting food – nectar and pollen. If untreated, a varroa mite infestation will cause a honeybee colony to die. “These mites have been associated with significant colony losses globally. The discovery has sent New South Wales into bee lockdown – with no honeybees allowed to be moved across the state – as authorities aim to eliminate the parasite.

Varroa Mite has been detected in Australia for the first time, locking down the beekeeping industry for two...

"There are many beekeepers out there who have signed contracts to move thousands of hives and now may not be able to - financially, it is going to be very hard for them." "For many beekeepers, this is where the bulk of their yearly income comes from," Mr Polie said. "It is going to cost the commercial industry a lot more to manage their hives," Mr McGann said. "The lockdown is a part of this management plan," he said. "Australia was the last country with a beekeeping industry to not have the parasite and now it's finally here." "We are the last country to have this happen," Mr Polie said.

BEEKEEPERS in the Upper Hunter are facing a nervous wait for updates following the detection of a deadly parasite at hives near the Port of Newcastle last ...

This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: Varroa is not seen as a threat to native bees.) Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement

Varroa mites are tiny red-brown external parasites of honey bees. They mainly feed and reproduce on honey bee larvae and pupae (bees transitioning between ...

A statewide emergency order has been issued to control the movement of bees across NSW and bees within 10 kilometres of the Port of Newcastle are being destroyed. "That's going to add to the cost of production to beekeepers, they're going to have to treat hives and it will be a different way of managing the hives," he said. Last Wednesday varroa mite was found in two of the six hives used to monitor biosecurity at the Port of Newcastle during a routine inspection. But this time they are being used to describe the response to varroa mite, a parasite that is threatening the Australian bee industry after it was found at the Port of Newcastle and a nearby commercial beekeeper last week. It is not yet clear where the varroa mite first detected came from,; whether it was from a ship that arrived at the port or if it was already in the country. - The varroa mite detected at the Port of Newcastle is more threatening than species previously found in Queensland

BEEKEEPERS in the Upper Hunter are facing a nervous wait for updates following the detection of a deadly parasite at hives near the Port of Newcastle last ...

This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: Varroa is not seen as a threat to native bees.) Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement

THE NSW Government is urging beekeepers across the state to safeguard their industry after biosecurity surveillance detected Varroa mite in hives at the ...

“Biosecurity is one of my top priorities and beekeepers have been working with the Government through the National Bee Pest Surveillance Program to act as an early warning system,” Mr Saunders said. A 25km surveillance zone is also still active around the site, where officials are monitoring and inspecting managed and feral honey bees to limit the extent of the incursion. “After the first detection of varroa mite at the Port of Newcastle on Friday, DPI is investigating potentially contaminated hives outside the initial 50 kilometre biosecurity zone,” Mr Saunders said. On Sunday night, a statewide emergency order was issued to control the movement of bees across NSW and stop the spread of varroa mite. THE NSW Government is urging beekeepers across the state to safeguard their industry after biosecurity surveillance detected Varroa mite in hives at the Port of Newcastle. Advertise with News of The Area today.Advertise with News of The Area today.

Authorities are closely monitoring any impact on Queensland's bee populations amid a "worrying" interstate detection of the deadly honey bee parasite, ...

"It will make the jobs of European honey beekeepers much harder. "We are trying to delve deeply into the reproductive biology of native stingless bees and, to do that, we need to observe as many different colonies as we can for as long as we possibly can," Dr Smith said. "When we look at the threats to stingless bees — are they in decline or are they not — we really just don't know, because we don't have the data of how many there were in the past compared to today." "This is very worrying news — in some ways, it's been inevitable. Native Australian stingless bees are powerful pollinators and have long been referred to as a "plan bee" for crop pollination — a backstop against the loss or decline of European honey bee populations. "A lot of the food we eat comes from pollination [by] bees and some of that comes from native bees.

Gary Polie's entire business has been plunged into lockdown. As of 6 pm Sunday (26 June), an emergency order was…

The contracts are meant to go out this week,” he said. Their breeding instincts get triggered after the winter solstice.” “While down here it’s colder, the Newcastle area is much warmer. “The ACT is working with all jurisdictions to receive an update on the situation in NSW and consider whether hive and bee movement controls will be required for the ACT,” a spokesperson said. “[The lockdown] is a very strict one and the message to all beekeepers, both hobby and professional, is that we do need them helping to monitor the situation and making sure we don’t see varroa mite spread across the state,” he said. “Those Trangie hives are now being dealt with, those bees will be euthanised and those hives destroyed.”

Nation is only major honey producer to have avoided the scourge of the deadly pest.