Tropilaelaps Mite
Krankheiten
Tropilaelaps mites are brood parasites of the honey bee, originally from Asia, where they live on the giant honey bees found there.
Tropilaelaps mites are brood parasites of the honey bee, originally from Asia, where they live on the giant honey bees found there. Of the known species, several also use the Western honey bee as a host. The mites are reddish-brown, elongated, and about 0.8 to 1 millimeter long, making them noticeably smaller and narrower than the broadly oval Varroa mite. They move remarkably fast across the combs.
The mites multiply in the capped brood and damage larvae and pupae. Their developmental cycle is shorter than that of the Varroa mite, and reproduction proceeds correspondingly rapidly. An infested colony can collapse within a few weeks. In the colony, patchy brood, opened and sunken cell cappings, crippled and damaged young bees, and crawling bees in front of the entrance can be seen, a picture reminiscent of very heavy Varroa infestation.
An important biological difference from the Varroa mite: Tropilaelaps cannot feed permanently on adult bees and dies within a few days in a broodless colony. Broodless periods, as occur naturally in winter in Central Europe or can be induced through beekeeping management, are therefore an effective point of intervention.
The mite has not yet become established in Europe, but there is evidence of it on the Western honey bee in Georgia, and experts expect further spread. In practice, this means above all vigilance during routine debris checks. Anyone who, when determining natural mite drop, finds conspicuously narrow, fast-moving mites alongside the familiar Varroa mites should secure and have them examined.
Infestation with Tropilaelaps mites is notifiable in Germany and the EU. Any suspected case must be reported immediately to the veterinary office (Veterinäramt). Under the Bee Disease Ordinance (Bienenseuchen-Verordnung), once officially confirmed, the area within a radius of at least one kilometer around the apiary is declared a restricted zone, and further measures are ordered by the authority. Unauthorized treatment attempts, moving colonies, or giving away suspected colonies should be avoided.