Beekeeping is a delicate balance of managing the health of the colony while controlling pests like the notorious Varroa mite. In this pursuit, innovative methods are continually being explored. One such method gaining attention is drone trapping. Although not widely adopted, its potential benefits and drawbacks warrant consideration, especially as resistance to conventional treatments becomes a concern.
Understanding Drone / Brood Trapping:
Varroa mites exhibit a preference for breeding in drone broods rather than worker broods. European studies have suggested that by using drone trapping, beekeepers can potentially achieve effective Varroa control. The method involves inserting a frame of drone brood into the hive, allowing the queen to lay eggs in it. Once the brood is sealed, beekeepers remove the frame, freeze it to terminate the brood, tap it to release any remaining Varroa mites, and repeat the process.
Pros and Cons of Drone Trapping:
Pros:
Targeted Varroa Control: Since Varroa prefers drone brood, drone trapping focuses on the mites' preferred breeding ground, providing a more targeted approach.
Reduced Chemical Dependency: Drone trapping offers an alternative to synthetic strips and chemical treatments, potentially reducing the dependence on conventional methods.
Inexpensive: This method is relatively low-cost compared to chemical treatments, making it appealing to beekeepers with budget constraints.
Cons:
Labor-Intensive: Drone trapping demands considerable effort and time. Beekeepers must repeatedly insert, remove, and process frames, which can be labor-intensive.
Disruption to Colonies: Frequent removal of drone brood can disrupt the natural rhythm of the colony and may affect its overall productivity.
Limited Adoption: The method is not widely adopted, possibly due to the convenience and efficiency of other treatments.
Implications for Australian Beekeepers:
While drone trapping may not be prevalent in other nearby regions like New Zealand, Australian beekeepers may find its potential benefits intriguing. Australia, facing its own challenges with Varroa detection, could consider alternative methods like drone trapping, especially as resistance to traditional treatments becomes a growing concern. The method's success may depend on factors such as climate, hive health, and beekeeping practices unique to the region.
Conclusion:
Drone trapping presents itself as a unique approach to Varroa control, showcasing the innovative spirit within the beekeeping community. As the threat of Varroa evolves and resistance to conventional treatments emerges, alternative methods like drone trapping may gain renewed attention. Australian beekeepers, in their pursuit of sustainable and effective Varroa control, might find this method worth exploring, acknowledging its pros and cons in the context of their local conditions.
Varroa mites reproduce within sealed honey bee brood. The mites prefer parasitising drone brood cells because they have the longest post-capping period, which allows the female mite to generate more mature progeny. It is estimated that drone brood attracts, on average, eight times more mites than worker brood1.
It is important that the drone brood is removed on time, before the drones hatch at the end of their 24 day development period, or you will be increasing the rate of mite population growth!
The concept is simple: insert a frame of drone comb into a colony at the edge of the brood nest, allow the queen to fill it with drone eggs, wait while the mites infest the cells, then remove the frame before the mites emerge.
There are effective naturally-derived treatments to control mites: formic acid (organic), oxalic acid (organic), botanical oils of thymol formulations. These treatments are discussed in the Honey Bee Health Coalition's Varroa Management Guide, and we urge all beekeepers to carefully follow the label on these products.
Alternative Pollinator Species. Bumblebees frequent fields, gardens and farms. Bumblebees (unlike the similar Carpenter Bees) are fuzzy, with yellow and white stripes. Bombus impatiens (Common Eastern Bumblebee) is the primary species used for commercial pollination of farms in North America.
Drones are male bees and their sole purpose is to mate with the queen: they don't work, don't make honey and can't sting. Since a queen only needs to mate once, most of the drones won't even get the chance to fulfil their role. But worker bees keep them around, just in case a new queen needs mating.
Apivar is one of the industry-leading preventions and treatments for Varroa mite infestations in honey bee colonies. It's safe and highly effective in keeping mite numbers low in hives and maintains healthier, longer-living bees.
Drones are larger than those of workers and therefore drone cells are larger than worker cells. This allows them to be visually distinguished quite easily. Another clue is that drone cells are almost always located around the edges of the brood area.
The other thing that could cause brood in the Flow Frames is there's no queen at all and the workers are laying and that brood will end up being unfertilized eggs and be male bees, the drone bees.
When the colony starts getting ready for winter, the worker bees, all female, kick the drones out. Sometimes it's swift and I will find their stung dead bodies in the front of the hive.
After emergence the drone remains in the hive for a few days. It then goes on 8-9 orientation flights of ~15 minutes duration over a 2-3 day period before spending the next 5 days (summer) or 12 days (spring) in the hive, even on days with great weather.
If chelifers are successfully located in beehives, they will hunt for Varroa mites and other prey and they will stab it, poison it and suck it out. Each pseudoscorpion can consume one to nine Varroa mites per day.
The life cycle of the Varroa mite is linked closely to the life cycle of the bees. The large- bodied, slow-developing drone bees provide excellent hosts for the female mites. Drone brood allows individual female mites to produce more offspring, and each drone can support more than one reproductive female mite.
Thymol. Essential oils are natural compounds distilled from plants. The most popular essential oil for varroa mite control is thymol (from a thyme plant). While thymol treatment can effectively control mites on adult bees, it cannot penetrate the cell cappings, so does not control mites in brood cells.
Amiflex is a 7-day treatment that can be used 1-4 times a year. The new gel formulation provides a faster release of amitraz than plastic strip applications, achieving 94% efficacy on the 3rd day of application and 100% on the 7th day in broodless colonies.
Other strategies to combat varroa mites include using dusts such as powdered sugar to remove mites from all adult bees in a colony, and purposely creating a break in brood production by caging queen honey bees.
Thymol. Essential oils are natural compounds distilled from plants. The most popular essential oil for varroa mite control is thymol (from a thyme plant). While thymol treatment can effectively control mites on adult bees, it cannot penetrate the cell cappings, so does not control mites in brood cells.
Apivar is one of the industry-leading preventions and treatments for Varroa mite infestations in honey bee colonies. It's safe and highly effective in keeping mite numbers low in hives and maintains healthier, longer-living bees.
Introduction: My name is Nicola Considine CPA, I am a determined, witty, powerful, brainy, open, smiling, proud person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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