Re: Varroa mite control
Guy Ames (guya@ncatfyv.uark.edu)
Fri, 24 May 1996 14:56:07 -0500 (CDT)
>
> Dear Sanet users,
>
> Is anyone working on a non-chemical approach to varroa mite control for
> honey production.??? So far two insecticides have had to be "retired" from
> use due to toxic residues in the honey. Much of the little literature we've
> been able to find seems to assume that insecticides are the only control.
> Have there been any results on possible biological control agents,
> management practices or other approaches? Thanks.
> Ronald Nigh
> Dana Association
> Mexico
> danamex@mail.internet.com.mx
>
>
Nicholas Calderone (Bee Research Lab, USDA-ARS, Bldg. 476,
Beltsville Agri. Res. Ctr. East, Beltsville, MD 20705) and
Marla Spivak have found that a combination of 75% thymol, 18%
eucalyptus, 3.5% L-menthol, and 3.5% camphor is "highly
effective in controlling V. jacobsoni. Two applications
of test material resulted in an average mite mortality of
96.7%." However, thymol, itself, can be stressful to bee
colonies, so Calderone cautions that further research is necessary
to fine tune the recommendations according to conditions, size
of hize, severity of mite problem, etc.
Citation:
Calderone, Nicholas and Marla Spivak. 1995. Plant extracts
for control of the parasitic mite Varroa jacobsoni (Acari:
Varroidae) in colonies of the western honey bee (Hymenoptera:
Apidae). Journal of Economic Entomology. Vol. 88. No. 5.
pp. 1211-1215.
(You'll probably want to consult this article for the methods
section to see how they "delivered" the thymol blend to the hive
or write Dr. Calderone.)
eucalyptus oil, menthol, camphor, and linalool