Low Temperature Scanning Electron Microscope (LTSEM) image of Varroa destructor on a honey bee host

Varroa mites on pupa

Varroa destructor on bee larva.

Varroa destructor is an external parasitic mite that attacks honey bees Apis cerana and Apis mellifera. The disease caused by the mites is called varroatosis. Image File history File links K5111-10i. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Subphyla and Classes Subphylum Trilobitomorpha Trilobita - trilobites (extinct) Subphylum Chelicerata Arachnida - spiders,scorpions, etc. ... Orders Acarina Amblypygi Araneae Opiliones Palpigradi Pseudoscorpionida Ricinulei Schizomida Scorpiones Solifugae Uropygi The arachnids, Arachnida, are a class of invertebrate animals in the subphylum Chelicerata. ... Families Tetranychidae - Spider mites Eriophyidae - Gall mites Sarcoptidae - Sarcoptic Mange mites The mites and ticks, order Acarina or Acari, belong to the Arachnida and are among the most diverse and successful of all the invertebrate groups, although some way behind the insects. ... Binomial name Varroa destructor Anderson & Trueman, 2000 Varroa destructor is an external parasitic mite that attacks honey bees Apis cerana and Apis mellifera, the bumblebee Bombus pennsylvanicus, the scarab beetle Palpada vinetorum and the flower-fly Phanaeus vindex. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 570 pixelsFull resolution (2400 × 1710 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 570 pixelsFull resolution (2400 × 1710 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Vorroa_Mite_on_pupa. ... Image File history File links Vorroa_Mite_on_pupa. ... Varroa mite Image copyleft: Image taken by me, released under GFDL Pollinator 03:49, Nov 9, 2004 (UTC) ( ) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Varroa mite Image copyleft: Image taken by me, released under GFDL Pollinator 03:49, Nov 9, 2004 (UTC) ( ) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Look up mite in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The honeybee is a colonial insect that is often maintained, fed, and transported by farmers. ... Apis cerana are small honeybees of southern and southeastern Asia. ... Binomial name Apis mellifera The species called Western honeybees (Apis mellifera) are honeybees comprised of several subspecies or races. ...

Varroa destructor can only replicate in a honey bee colony. It attaches at the body of the bee and weakens the bee by sucking hemolymph. In this process the mite spreads RNA viruses like Deformed Wing Virus to the bee. A significant mite infestation will lead to the death of a honey bee colony, usually in the late autumn through early spring. The Varroa mite has been the parasite with the most pronounced economic impact on the beekeeping industry. It may be a contributing factor to Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) which is threatening hives throughout North America. Hemolymph (or haemolymph) is the blood analogue used by all arthropods and most mollusks that have an open circulatory system. ... An RNA virus is a virus that either uses RNA as its genetic material, or whose genetic material passes through an RNA intermediate during replication. ... Deformed Wing Virus (DWV) is an RNA virus, one of 18 known viruses, affecting the honey bee, Apis mellifera. ... Beekeeping, tacuinum sanitatis casanatensis (XIV century) Beekeeping (or apiculture, from Latin apis, a bee) is the practice of intentional maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. ... A honey bee on a Geraldton Wax Flower. ... CCD can stand for: Cafe Coffee Day, a chain of coffee shops in India Charge-coupled device, an electronic light sensor used in digital cameras Colony Collapse Disorder, a mysterious die-off of commercial honeybees Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, a Catholic association devoted to teaching religion Carbonate Compensation Depth, a...

Physical description

The adult mite is reddish-brown in color; has a flat, button shape; is 1-1.8 mm long and 1.5-2 mm wide; and has eight legs.

Reproduction, infection and hive mortality

Mites reproduce on a 10-day cycle. The female mite enters a honey bee brood cell. As soon as the cell is capped, the Varroa mite lays eggs on the larva which hatch into several females and typically one male. The young mites hatch in about the same time as the young bee develops and leave the cell with the host. When the young bee emerges from the cell after pupation the Varroa mites also leave and spread to other bees and larvae. The mite preferentially infests drone cells.

The adults suck the "blood" of adult honey bees for sustenance, leaving open wounds. The compromised adult bees are more prone to infections. With the exception of some resistance in the Russian Honey Bee, the European Apis mellifera bees are almost completely defenseless against these parasites. (Russian honey bees are one third to one half less susceptible to mite reproduction [1].) Apis cerana has developed grooming procedures that remove these parasites so they are not a threat to these hives. Binomial name Apis mellifera The species called Western honeybees (Apis mellifera) are honeybees comprised of several subspecies or races. ... The Russion honeybee from the Primorsky Krai, a region in the southern extreme of the Russian Far East, belongs to the species Apis mellifera. ... Apis cerana are small honeybees of southern and southeastern Asia. ... A parasite is an organism that spends a significant portion of its life in or on the living tissue of a host organism and which causes harm to the host without immediately killing it. ...

The model for the population dynamics is exponential growth when bee brood are available and exponential decline when no brood is available. In 12 weeks the number of mites in a Western honey bee hive can multiply by (roughly) 12. High mite populations in the fall can cause a crisis when drone rearing ceases and the mites switch to worker larvae, causing a quick population crash and often hive death. Population dynamics is the study of marginal and long-term changes in the numbers, individual weights and age composition of individuals in one or several populations, and biological and environmental processes influencing those changes. ... In mathematics, exponential growth (or geometric growth) occurs when the growth rate of a function is always proportional to the functions current size. ... Binomial name Linnaeus, 1758 Synonyms Apis mellifica Linnaeus, 1761 The Western honey bee or European honey bee (Apis mellifera) is a species of honey bee. ...

Varroa mites have been found on flower feeding insects such as the bumblebee Bombus pennsylvanicus, the scarab beetle Phanaeus vindex and the flower-fly Palpada vinetorum (Kevan et al. 1990). Although the Varroa mite cannot reproduce on these insects, its presence on them may be a means by which it spreads short distances (phoresy). Species more than 250 species and subspecies in 37 subgenera Bumblebees (also spelled bumble bee, also known as humblebee) are flying insects of the genus Bombus in the family Apidae. ... Genera not a complete list Agestrata Anoplognathus Augosoma Canthon Chrysina Chalcosoma Chelorrhina Cheirolasia Cheirotonus Cotinis Dynastes Eudicella Goliathus Megsoma Onthophagus Pachnoda Phanaeus Plusiotis Ranzania Rhomborrhina Stephanorrhina Xylotrupes The scarab is a type of beetle noted for rolling dung into spherical balls and pushing it, as well as its habit of... Binomial name Wikispecies has information related to: Phanaeus vindex Phanaeus vindex, the rainbow scarab or rainbow scarab beetle is a North American dung beetle, with a range from the eastern US to the Rocky Mountains. ... Genera many genera about 5,000 species The flower flies or hoverflies are a family of flies (Diptera), scientifically termed Syrphidae. ... In ecology, commensalism is an interaction between two living organisms, where one creature benefits and the other is neither harmed nor helped. ...

Introduction around the world

• Early 1960s Japan, USSR
• 1960s-1970s Eastern Europe
• 1971 Brazil
• Late 1970s South America
• 1982 France
• 1984 Switzerland, Spain, Italy
• 1987 USA
• 1989 Canada
• 1992 England
• 2000 New Zealand (North Island)
• 2006 New Zealand (South Island) ^[1]
• 2007 Hawaiian Islands ^[2][3]

Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium orange),members of the Warsaw pact (light orange), and other former Communist regimes not aligned with Moscow (lightest orange). ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is about the year. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... North Island The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, the other being the South Island. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The South Island The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Map of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of islands that stretches 2,400 km in a northwesterly direction from the southern tip of the Island of Hawai‘i. ...

Identification

Varroa destructor was, until recently, thought to be a closely related mite species called Varroa jacobsoni^{[2] [3] [4]}. Both species parasitize the Asian honey bee, Apis cerana. However, the species originally described as V. jacobsoni by Oudemans in 1904 is not the same species that also attacks Apis mellifera. The jump to mellifera probably first took place in the Philippines in the early 1960’s where imported Apis mellifera came into close contact with infected Apis cerana. Up until 2000, scientists had not identified Varroa destructor as a separate species. This late identification in 2000 by Anderson and Trueman corrected some previous confusion and mislabeling in the scientific literature. As of 2005, the only Varroa mites that can reproduce in colonies of Apis mellifera (Western honeybee) are the Korea and Japan/Thailand genotypes of Varroa destructor. Binomial name Varroa destructor Varroa destructor is an external parasitic mite that attacks honey bees Apis cerana and Apis mellifera, the bumblebee Bombus pennsylvanicus, the scarab beetle Palpada vinetorum and the flower-fly Phanaeus vindex. ... Apis cerana are small honeybees of southern and southeastern Asia. ... Anthonid Cornelis Oudemans was a Dutch scientist. ... Binomial name Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758 The Western honeybee or European honeybee (Apis mellifera) is a species of honeybee comprised of several subspecies or races. ...

Control or preventive measures and treatment

Chemical measures

Varroa mites can be treated with commercially-available miticides. Miticides must be applied strictly according to the label in order to minimize the contamination of honey that might be consumed by humans. Proper use of miticides will also help to slow the development of resistance among the mites. Miticides are pesticides that kill mites. ... For other uses, see Honey (disambiguation). ...

Synthetic chemicals

• pyrethroid insecticide (Apistan) as strips
• organophosphate insecticide (Coumaphos (Check-mite)) as strips

Natural occurring chemicals A pyrethroid is a synthetic chemical that kills most insects. ... It has been suggested that ovicide be merged into this article or section. ... An organophosphate (sometimes abbreviated OP) is the general name for esters of phosphoric acid and is one of the organophosphorus compounds. ...

• sugar esters (Sucrocide) in spray application
• oxalic acid trickling method or applied as vapor (Dany's BienenWohl or VARROX-Vaporiser)
• formic acid as vapor or pads
• Foodgrade mineral oil as vapor and in direct application on paper or cords.
• Essential oil especially lemon, mint, and thyme oil

A carboxylic acid ester. ... Oxalic acid (IUPAC name: ethanedioic acid, formula C2H2O4) is a dicarboxylic acid with structure (HOOC)-(COOH). ... Formic acid (systematically called methanoic acid) is the simplest carboxylic acid. ...

Physical or mechanical methods

Varroa mites can also be controlled through non-chemical means. Most of these controls are intended to reduce the mite population to a manageable level, not to eliminate the mites completely.

• Many beekeepers use a screened bottom board on their hives. When mites occasionally fall off a bee, they must climb back up to parasitize a new bee. If the beehive has a screened floor with mesh the right size, the mite will fall through and can not return to the beehive. The screened bottom board is also being credited with increased circulation of air which reduces condensation in a hive during the winter. (Studies at Cornell University done over several years found that screened bottoms have no measurable effect at all. Northeast Beekeeper Vol 1 #1 Jan 2004)
• Screened bottom board with sticky board. It separates mites that fall through the screen and the sticky board prevents them from crawling back up.
• Small cell foundation (4.9 mm across - about 0.5 mm smaller than standard) is believed to limit the space in each cell that Varroa mites have in which to inhabit and also to enhance the difference in size between worker and drone brood with the intention of making the drone comb traps more effective in trapping Varroa mites. Small cell foundation has staunch advocates though controlled studies have been generally inconclusive.
• The Konya revolving or rotating hive design is a patented invention of Lajos Konya, a beekeeper in Öttevény, Hungary. The hive has a cylindrical brood chamber, circular frames and an apparatus to rotate the frames according to a specific schedule. The rotation is believed to disrupt the Varroa mite reproduction cycle with this rotation thereby reducing fecundity of the parasite.

“Cornell” redirects here. ... Öttevény is a village in Győr-Moson-Sopron county, Hungary. ... Fecundity is the potential reproductive capacity of an organism or population, measured by the number of gametes (e. ...

Behavioral methods

• Powdered sugar (Dowda Method), talc or other "safe" powders with a grain size between 5 and 15 micrometres can be sprinkled on the bees. The powder does not harm the bees (and, if you use sugar, can even become a small source of feed), but does interfere with the mite's ability to maintain its hold on the bee. It is also believed to increase the bees' grooming behavior. This causes a certain percentage of mites to become dislodged. Powdered sugar works best as an amplifier of the effects of a screened bottom board.
• Freezing drone brood takes advantage of Varroa mites' preference for longer living drone brood. The beekeeper will put a frame in the hive that is sized to encourage the queen to lay primarily drone brood. Once the brood is capped, the beekeeper removes the frame and puts it in the freezer. This kills the Varroa mites that are parasitizing those bees. It also kills the drone brood, but most hives produce an excess of drone bees so it is not generally considered a loss. After freezing, the frame can be returned to the hive. The nurse bees will clean out the dead brood (and dead mites) and the cycle continues.
• Drone brood excision is a variation applicable to top bar hives. Honey bees tend to place comb suitable for drone brood along the bottom and outer margins of the comb. Cutting this off at a late stage of development ("purple eye stage") and discarding it reduces the mite load on the colony. It also allows for inspection and counting of varroa on the brood.
• Swarming or queen-arrest method. By interrupting the honey bee brood cycle, mites reproduction is also blocked.
• Hygienic Behavior. Hygienic behavior is biological behavior with genetic traits that can be bred into bees. This behavior causes bees to smell infected brood and remove them before the infestation spreads further. http://www.sare.org/publications/factsheet/0305_01.htm

Blue-Russian drone honeybees drinking. ... Top-bar hives are a style of beehive used for beekeeping. ...

Varroatosis

The infection and subsequent parasitic disease caused by varroa mites is called varroatosis. Its treatment has been of limited success. First the bees were medicated with fluvinate which had about 95% mite falls. However the last five percent became resistant to it and later, almost immune. Fluvinate was followed by coumophose, an active ingredient in VX nerve gas. A parasitic disease is a disease caused or transmitted by a parasite. ...

References

1. ^  Anderson, D & Trueman, J. W. H. (2000). "Varroa jacobsoni (Acari: Varroidae) is more than one species." Experimental & Applied Acarology, 24, 165-189.
2. ^ ZHANG, ZHI-QIANG Notes on Varroa destructor (Acari: Varroidae) parasitic on honeybees in New Zealand Systematic & Applied Acarology Special Publications (2000) 5, 9-14
3. ^  Delaplane, Keith S. Varroa destructor: Revolution in the Making University of Georgia; Bee World; 2001; 82(4): 157-159

• British Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Managing varroa , 1996
• Kevan, P., et al. 1990 Association of Varroa jacobsoni with organisms other than honeybees and implications for its dispersal. Bee World 71: 3, 119-121.

• Tracheal and Varroa Mite Controls Apiculture Factsheet #221, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Government of British Columbia; April 2004
• Oils for Varroa Control Botanicals For Mite Control, Canadian Honey Council, 3/16/2003

The University of Georgia (UGA) is the largest institution of higher learning in the U.S. state of Georgia. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor Iona Campagnolo - Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 36 - Senate seats 6 Confederation July 20, 1871 (6th province) Area  Ranked 4th - Total 944,735 km...

Notes

1. ^ http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/pests-diseases/animals/varroa
2. ^ http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/custom/photos/chi-pod-pix,1,3508151.photogallery?coll=chi-unrelatedcontent-fea&index=38
3. ^ http://starbulletin.com/2007/04/25/business/story02.html

External links

• Natural Cell Size for Varroa Control
• Small Cell Beekeepers Group
• Using Powdered Sugar for Varroa Mite Control

The Swiss Bee Research Centre scientifically investigated the life cycle of the varroa in the capped cell and described it in a paper (A Look under the cap).