Varroa mite detected in bee hives at Sellicks Hill and Taratap
Varroa mite has been detected in two more locations across South Australia. (ABC Rural: Melanie Groves)
In short:
A honey bee-killing parasite has been detected in the state's Fleurieu Peninsula and at a second location in the Limestone Coast.
The latest discovery follows last week's detection at Salt Creek.
What's next?
The South Australian Varroa Industry Advisory Committee is expected to meet today.
Beekeepers are being urged to monitor their hives more frequently after further detections of the deadly bee parasite varroa mite in South Australia.
The Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) said the new locations are at Sellicks Hill in the upper Fleurieu Peninsula and Taratap on the Limestone Coast.
The two detections were linked, with both affected beekeepers having operated at the same property at Gumeracha in the Adelaide Hills.
PIRSA said the mite has not been detected at the Gumeracha property but "may potentially be within" the feral or unmanaged bee population in the area.
It also said the Taratap site was directly linked to a detection last week at Salt Creek, in the Coorong region in the state's south-east.
"A source for this incursion is not known at this stage," it said.
Varroa mites are 1 to 2-millimetre-long parasites that find honey bees as hosts. (Supplied: Gilles San Martin)
Varroa mites can kill honey bees and can cause colony collapse in heavily infested hives.
South Australia is the fifth state to detect the pest and has been acting in accordance with the national plan, which involves supporting beekeepers and controlling the spread rather than total eradication.
In a statement, PIRSA chief veterinary officer Skye Fruean said the department has been focused on managing varroa "in a way that minimises its impact while ensuring business continuity" for the agricultural and horticulture industries.
"While it is disappointing that there have been more detections of varroa mite in South Australia, they are all linked to a site in Gumeracha so that helps us to manage the pest and hopefully slow its spread,"she said.
PIRSA said it has helped beekeepers install surveillance mats and treatment to all bee hives at Salt Creek and Taratap, while it has provided support to the Sellicks Hill site.
It said bees, hives and equipment at the affected apiary sites cannot be moved "to allow a thorough traceback assessment, surveillance and treatment".
The department is urging all beekeepers within 25 kilometres of Sellicks Hill, Gumeracha, Salt Creek or Taratap since mid-August to shorten their monitoring intervals to every three to four weeks.
Consequences of varroa mite
South Australia first found varroa mite in the Riverland's Pooginook in September but PIRSA said there was no evidence to date to link the latest detection to this initial occurrence.
The Pooginook infested hive was part of a consignment from Queensland and PIRSA said all impacted hives were moved out of the state by their interstate owner.
Beekeepers Society of SA's Simon Gerblich told ABC Radio Adelaide the impacts of varroa mite can be devastating.
"If we have a lot of the feral bees wiped out in the next year, it's going to have massive consequences for food security in South Australia," he said.
"People have had a false sense of confidence, well, because I actually thought that there was none here and and we were waiting for it to come in from Victoria but it appears that it's been here and people just aren't testing."
He said beekeepers should check their hives and register with PIRSA to ensure they are getting updated communications about the pest.
The South Australian Varroa Industry Advisory Committee is expected to meet today.