 A useful study, our envoy, Francesco Colafemmina, has found and interviewed a professor, James Ellis, one of the world's leading experts and the small hive has heard Apitalia
Professor James Ellis, Professor of Entomology and Nematology University of Florida is considered a right, despite his young age, one of the world's leading experts dell'Aethina tumida, known in English by the initials of SHB (Small Hive Beetle, a small hive beetle). Ph.D. degree from Rhodes University in South Africa with studies on its all'Aethina that has spread from there, then, in the rest of the world. Up to land in Italy.
The pleasant conversation with Professor Ellis, who, however, has provided us with some of his more recent studies, there has calmed quite a bit. "The little beetle is here considered a minor pest of bees, like the wax moth." So begins Ellis adds: "Since arriving here in Florida in 1996 in this state maintains the highest population of all the United States. Sure, at first it was a big problem for local beekeepers, especially when coupled with the varroa mite, pesticide use, etc.. " In time, however, became a "minor pest".
Professor Ellis, he heard of the arrival of SHB in Italy, what do you think needs to be done to eradicate the infestation?
I think it is a useful attempt, but at the same time let me say that it might just be wasted effort. The SHB moves in the air covering long distances, pupate in the soil even at a distance of 4-10 meters from the hive and can creep in swarms or feral swarms of bumblebees. If you really had the chance to reproduce in three nuclei then destroyed by now will be difficult to halt the advance. It would take several vets in action at the same time, along with beekeepers that monitor each other. In any case it can not hurt and, yes, I think it is useful to provide compensation to beekeepers whose hives are destroyed as part of the eradication program.
In the States were expected reimbursements similar?
Not at all, because here since the first time no attempt was made to eradicate the infestation. Beekeeper has lost some of the hives, but right now we intervened with the traps and techniques of management of apiaries times to keep the population under control dell'Aethina, which is now considered as equivalent to the wax moth ... If I tell you more, I almost stopped doing research on the SHB since he became a secondary problem of bees.
Come on in Europe at the time. The blazing will open a new career! Joking aside, what they can do Italian beekeepers to control the small hive beetle?
Use the traps. There are several on the market. The most effective is the one called "beetle blaster" (picture in these two pages), it is a small tray that is placed on the top between two honeycombs and filled with apple vinegar or wine vinegar. The trap uses the behavior of bees, which tend to relegate - provided that the family is in good health - the adult specimens of small hive in the "prisons" propolizzate the outer margins of the upper honeycomb. For this reason it is good to place these traps between the first and second comb or between the ninth and tenth (taking as an example a hive of 10 and assuming that the frames are all covered with bees). With this system you can capture more than 50% of adult individuals, allowing the bees to clean up any cells in which the females are trying to reproduce. Another extreme solution when you want to check the possible presence of the beetle, is to shake all the honeycombs on a wooden board and remove one by one the pieces.
And the coumaphos?
I do not think an effective product. From studies carried out show that the strips of coumaphos fail to eliminate more or less 40% of adults. This is because they will damage the bees strips are placed inside plastic-coated cartons placed on the bottom of the hive, but not always the small hive ends there. They are much more attracted by vinegar or apple by vinegar of wine. Now, in Australia we use a chemical based on fipronil, the apithor which proved to be extremely effective in the fight all'aethina ...
The interrupt: Fipronil is banned in Europe (even if it is used in the popular Frontline flea and tick product for dogs)!
So I do not know what to say ... Of course, Fipronil works better than any other chemical.
And regarding the use of pheromones or biological warfare?
Pheromones have been studied by a group of researchers extensively but without significant results. So much so that we moved out of a yeast that the beetle carries on his body and that mimics the alarm pheromone of bees. This yeast is also due to the fermentation of honey eaten by the larvae can be used as an attractor of SHB, but the results do not differ much from the attractiveness of apple vinegar or wine.
There is a mushroom that seems to give promising results in the destruction of the larvae, as well as some types of nematodes that are common in the soil and lead to the rapid destruction of the larvae that emerge from the hive to pupate.
When to use the traps?
Here we put the traps from March until September. Normally occurs in the presence dell'Aethina a few weeks.
From what you say it does seem that the small hive beetle does not meet the fears and emotional reactions of Italian and European beekeepers in the past few hours ...
Sure. I understand the difficulties of the companies that sell packages and queens, but unfortunately when you develop these problems always tends to restrict the movement of bees. It serves, however, apply in a careful and meticulous practice of good management of the hives. What I suggest here to beekeepers small size (200-500 colonies) is to manage everything that is manageable: Varroa, American foulbrood, cleaning. You have to have colonies in force, restrict the space so that the bees can easily oversee all honeycombs, keeping the strong mininuclei (among the preferred prey dall'Aethina), set traps, especially in the period of maximum reproduction that is more or less June.
We must, then, do not leave pieces of honeycomb nell'apiario and keep clean laboratories, where larvae of small hive present in honey can easily create damage. That said, the SHB is still a minor problem compared to the varroa or pesticides. It should be handled only in a conscious way.
What about small hive and then the interaction between soil and climatic conditions?
If I can be frank I think that the small hive will remain a minor pest in Europe because the climate is not appropriate to its development. To grow it needs high temperatures and high humidity: conditions that are found in the southeastern United States and in Australia as well as in his home country. Certainly, areas of irrigated citrus groves in Calabria as those areas are very similar to Florida and represents fertile ground for the development of the beetle. Wet soils: these are the places preferred by the beetle. So, except for some areas of southern Italy, I find it very difficult for the small hive can survive the harsh winters of the north and find the ideal conditions to grow enough to cause serious problems for beekeepers.
Professor, what to say, thank you for your clarification that we are nothing more than useful tools to cope with a new emergency and at the same time a comfort in this time of confusion.
Happy to assist you and good luck to beekeepers Italian! |
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Jon
Bookmarks