Varroa mites are a genus of parasites that infect honey bees and their brood. This provokes the development of a dangerous pathology – varroatosis. This pathology has become widespread and poses a real threat to bee colonies. To cope with the disease, it is important to take timely measures. To do this, it is permissible to use chemical, physical and zootechnical methods.
Description of the disease
Varroatosis is one of the most common diseases of bees, caused by Varroa Jacobsoni mites.This pathology is considered non-infectious, but it spreads quickly and easily.
The disease affects worker bees, drones and brood. Sometimes the uterus is also affected. As a result of the development of pathology, the immunity of bees is weakened. An infected bee appears weak and restless. In addition, insect mortality increases.
Initially, it was believed that mites absorb the hemolymph of bees, that is, they feed on their blood. However, recent studies have shown that adipose tissue is considered the basis of Varroa's nutrition. Its deficiency significantly weakens the immune system of insects. In addition, ticks spread infections.
Causes and symptoms
The main reasons for the development of the disease include the following:
- Bee theft. The disease can be brought by insects that have flown in from another bee colony.
- Enlarging the colony with new boundaries if it contains infected individuals or brood.
- Getting into a hive with worker bees or drones after honey collection or flight. Varroa can detach from the insect and wait for a new victim within 5 days. After attaching itself to a new bee, the mite enters the hive.
- Close proximity of hives.
- Nomadic families. In the process, healthy individuals can become infected from sick ones.
- Purchasing an infected queen, brood or bees.
Mites accumulate to a greater extent in the brood. In this case, the drone brood suffers 7-15 times more than the bee brood.
When signs of the disease appear, you can see the following:
- deformation of the limbs, abdomen, wings of bees;
- decreased performance;
- reduced life expectancy;
- increased amount of waste;
- a large number of dead bees and larvae near the hive - the insects themselves throw out infected individuals;
- yolk tint and rotting of affected larvae.
If you place a sheet of paper at the bottom of the hive, you will be able to see mites that literally fall off the bees.
There are 3 stages of the disease:
- weak – up to 10% of damage;
- average – 10-20% of damage;
- strong - more than 20% of the lesion.
If more than a tenth of the bee colony is affected, urgent intervention will be required. Otherwise, there is a risk of losing all insects.
Ways to combat varroa
There are no biological methods to combat varroa. Ticks have no diseases or enemies in nature. The only option for regulating the number of parasites is to remove the affected drone brood. It is also worth using physical, chemical and zootechnical methods to combat the disease. In addition, there are many effective folk recipes.
Chemical methods
These methods involve the use of various chemicals that need to be used to treat bee colonies. Under the influence of various substances, parasites die or fall off. Most often, bees are treated for varroa in the fall.
The bulk of these drugs include amitraz or fluvalinate. They are systemic acaricides. Amitraz is present in such products as “Bipin”, “Varropol”, “Varroadez”.Fluvalinate is part of "Apifin", "Apistan", "Fumisan".
Remedies for varroatosis differ in different forms of release. This can be an aqueous solution or a strip of wood or impregnated polymer.
Physical methods
Such methods do not give results in the fight against mites that have penetrated the sealed brood. In other situations, it is permissible to use the following methods:
- Thermal. This treatment is short-term in nature and involves exposure to temperature. In this case, the parameters +43-46 degrees are used. Under the influence of elevated temperatures, mites die and fall off. However, this method can lead to the death of the queen and worker bees. That's why it is used very rarely.
- Magnetic. To implement this method, you will need strong paired magnets. They need to be placed in the bee movement zone - in the area of the entrance, sub-frame space and flight board. When bees get into the zone of action of magnets, the mites fall off them. To prevent parasites from returning to the hive, mechanical traps must be used. For this purpose, mesh trays covered with paper are used. You need to apply oil or Vaseline on it.
Zootechnical methods
A common method of eliminating varroa is the fight against drone brood. In summer, 85% of ticks get there. In this case, you need to place a frame with a small strip of foundation near the young bee brood. The bees will build it up with drone cells, and the queen will subsequently sow them.
After sealing the cells, it is recommended to remove the frame and place it in hot water at a temperature of +55 degrees for 3 hours. This will ensure the death of the parasites. The caps can then be printed and framed in the hive. The dead larvae will become protein food for the bees.However, the frame does not have to be returned. In this case, its contents are shaken out and destroyed. If the frame is needed, it is worth treating it with acetic acid.
Folk remedies
To eliminate the disease, you can resort to folk remedies. For this purpose, it is permissible to use a 10% solution of lactic acid, which should be used to sprinkle the frames with bees. This is recommended to be done at temperatures above +14 degrees. On average, you need to use 10 milliliters of solution for 1 frame.
Fresh thyme is considered an equally effective remedy. It needs to be crushed, placed in gauze and covered with film. Every 3 days you need to replace the dried mass with fresh raw materials. This method can be used throughout the season. However, it will not have an effect at temperatures above +27 degrees.
Possible consequences
At the initial stage, this disease is asymptomatic. If the damage is more than 10%, urgent measures must be taken. Mites are very harmful to bees. They almost completely destroy the brood and make the insects unproductive. Parasites deprive drones of the ability to fertilize. In addition, mites carry infections and cause serious stress in bee colonies.
Prevention
To avoid infesting bees with mites, you need to adhere to the following rules:
- Place apiaries in the growth zones of certain plants. These include nettle, oregano, elderberry, mint, celandine, wild rosemary.
- Periodically remove the printed drone brood from the development frames.
- Use fertilizers with cobalt salts, acaricides, and biologically active additives.
Varroa mites pose a serious threat to bees. To prevent these parasites from harming bee colonies, it is important to prevent varroa.If signs of illness appear, immediate action must be taken.
