Bees

[Michael Lenz <>]

The mite affecting honeybees Philip was referring to (the Varroa mite) has not yet reached Australia, but this is just luck. It can arrive at any time. So far Australia is one of the very few countries without this mite. It reached New Zealand in 2000. Beekeepers can use chemicals to treat their hives, but feral bees are very vulnerable. In New Zealand numbers of feral bee colonies have dropped to 10% after the mite appeared.

see also http://theconversation.com/explainer-varroa-mite-the-tiny-killer-threatening-australias-bees-25710

Michael Lenz

On 6 October 2014 17:46, Margaret Leggoe <m("gmail.com","m.leggoe7141");" target="_blank">> wrote:

Thank you everyone for coming in on this discussion.  It seems only Rosemary and I, so far, have been ones to notice a dearth of bees in their garden.  Hopefully this is due to some local factor, e.g. someone using pesticide a bit carelessly rather than an infectious agent with the potential to spread.

It would be great if people could keep this issue in the back of their minds as spring progresses.

Cheers

Margaret Leggoe