Australia invasion of bee-killing mite ‘inevitable’

By Debra Jopson
August 18, 2010 It is the migrant we cannot live without. The wild European honey bee helps to create one in every three mouthfuls we eat by pollinating plants, but some of our favourite foods are at risk because of a bee-killing mite which is ”more than likely” to reach Australia, a new report says. Apples, avocados, blueberries and rockmelons, which rely on bees to create their fruit, are among foods most threatened by the varroa mite, which has hit every other major beekeeping area of the world, say researchers. ”We don’t know what life would be without bees. We know at least 35 food groups would be directly affected by this,” says Gerald Martin, chairman of the committee advising the federal government on pollination research.” About $4 billion worth of food groups that require bees would be affected by a lack of bees. There are more [foods] we haven’t explored yet.” … Scientists’ warnings that Australia is next should be heeded because New Zealand and Papua New Guinea have been hit by the mite which, undetected, can destroy an entire hive within two to three years, Mr Martin says. ”We are treating this as inevitable,” he says. Food producers and apiarists trying to protect the honey bee from extinction want amateur and professional beekeepers who own 500,000 hives nationwide to keep a lookout for the varroa mite, a brown insect the size of a pin head with tiny legs visible under a magnifying glass. Once they are spotted, says Mr Martin, ”all hell breaks loose”. ”We will quarantine the area and use whatever is needed to eradicate them.” …