Project Overview
Leveraging a collaborative working group to address emergent parasitic mite IPM challenges for beekeepers in the Southern United States
Commodities
- Animals: bees
- Pollinators: honey bees
Target Pests
- Target Pests: other, varroa mite
Practices
- Pest Management: chemical control, cultural control, monitoring/scouting
- Animal Production: animal protection and health
- Crop Production: beekeeping/honey
Proposal abstract:
The primary purpose of this project is to refine a working group of researchers and extension specialists supported by a previous SIPMC Working Group grant. The group aims to develop and promote parasitic mite IPM targeting the leading threats to honey bee health in the Southern US: Varroa destructor, recognized as a priority by the SERA3 IPM group, and Tropilaelaps mercedesae, a pest with a high risk of introduction to the US.
Key objectives of the working group will be to: 1) validate predictions for winter broodless periods and optimal treatment timings in the Southern US, and 2) deliver Varroa and Tropilaelaps-based IPM education to our region’s stakeholders.
We will achieve Objective 1 by delivering an output-based capped winter brood monitoring program. The team will continue previously supported collaborative brood monitoring for a third year, while providing collaborators with Pol-line queen stock selectively bred for mite resistance traits to standardize genetics across collaborators’ apiaries. This standardization reduces variability due to queen stock, ensuring that researchers can more accurately attribute differences in brood levels to local areas and regional variation. We will expand this effort by launching a citizen science brood monitoring program open to all beekeepers. This will help the team validate predictions for optimal treatment timings and provide beekeepers with hands-on experience in inspecting winter brood.
Objective 2 will be achieved by meeting with stakeholders to deliver lectures and demonstrations concerning key mite IPM knowledge, tools, and techniques. Furthermore, we will host an in-person team-building activity to discuss the impacts of our objectives and associated activities. This includes developing presentation templates and outreach materials on optimal winter Varroa IPM timing and crucial information on Tropilaelaps biology and identification.
The anticipated impact of this project enhances the sustainability of the beekeeping industry in the Southeast US by increasing the efficacy of mite treatments and building regional awareness and resilience for the looming threat of Tropilaelaps.
