SHB RESEARCH FOR 2004

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ITS not much but heres the report


  Research
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Research Project: Small Hive Beetle Research in the Southern U.S. - Biology and Control
Location: Honey Bee Research

2004 Annual Report

What were the most significant accomplishments this past year?
D. Progress Report This report serves to document research conducted under a Specific Cooperative Agreement between ARS and the University of Georgia. Additional details of research can be found in the report for the parent CRIS 6204-21000-009-00D Pests, Parasites, Diseases and Stress of Honey Bees Used in Honey Production and Pollination. Georgia studies indicated that small hive beetle-naïve European honey bees also confine beetles, and this behavior is quantitatively similar to that in African bees. If confinement efforts fail, beetles access the combs where they feed and reproduce. Like subspecies of African honey bees, European bees in Georgia can detect and remove brood that has been oviposited on by beetles. Enhancing the removal rate of infected brood in European colonies through selective breeding may achieve genetic control of beetles. An additional avenue of control was tested for efficacy against beetles in Georgia. Reducing colony entrances slowed beetle ingress, but the efficacy of this method probably depends on other factors. Regardless, no control tested to date proved efficacious at the level needed by beekeepers, so an integrated approach to controlling beetles remains preferred. Data gathered on the small hive beetle in South Africa and Georgia contributed to new information on the beetle's ecological niche, ability to impact honey bee colonies in ways never considered, and the ability to predict the beetle's spread and impact globally.