How To Check For Varroa Mites With the Sugar Roll Method скачать в хорошем качестве

How To Check For Varroa Mites With the Sugar Roll Method

How to check for mites with the sugar roll method. One of the most important questions a beekeeper asks him or herself is - how healthy are my bees? The Varroa Mite is a destructive pest that leeches onto a honeybee and literally sucks it's blood. Some believe the v.destructor is actually sucking out the honeybee fat, but either way, it slowly drains the life from the colony. Not only does it suck the life out of a bee, it also transmits viruses which can ultimately mean the early death of a colony. Fortunately, there are a number of ways we can monitor our bees for varroa infestation in order to take whatever action we feel necessary or warranted. One of my favorite ways to monitor for mites is to do periodic (every 2-3 weeks during the active beekeeping season) sugar roll. An alternative to a sugar roll is an alcohol wash, and some beekeepers feel it is more accurate, however in my tests I've found the results to be very similar. An alcohol wash kills the sample of bees as well, so in my opinion it's not worth the minute degree of increased accuracy it might provide. A sugar roll (or sugar shake) is a fairly humane way of performing a spot check on a hive for varroa mite infestation levels. It’s not a perfect science, but multiple rolls done over a period of time can give a good indicator of how mite levels are increasing throughout the beekeeping season. Here's a high level overview for the steps I take when performing a sugar roll: 1) Prepare an empty container (some sort of plastic basin) where you will dump a sample of bees into as well as a mason jar with a screened lid 2) Locate a frame of brood (preferably a full frame of bees covering) from the middle of the brood nest 3) Scan the frame VERY carefully to ensure the queen is not anywhere on the frame 4) Bring the frame with the nurse bees over to your empty container 5) Tap the frame sharply once into the container so the bees all fall off into the container. Bees will fly around, but nurse bees generally will not, so there is no rush or panic at this stage 6) Scoop up about 1/2 a cup of bees (approximately 300 bees) and dump into the mason jar and screw the screened lid on 7) Add a tablespoon of powdered sugar through the screen into the jar 8) Start rolling the bees around (with the screen up) inside the jar for 2 minutes until all the bees are coated with sugar 8b) Let the jar sit for about a minute 9) Turn the jar upside down over a container of water and shake for about a minute. 10) Check the water for mites and count 11) The bees can now be dumped back into the hive where they'll be cleaned off by their sisters, none the worse for wear! The sugar helps dislodge the parasitic mites that have attached to the bees and they will be floating in the water, visible to the naked eye. They're small, but if you have a white container with water they should stand out even if they're only the size of a pin head. If you know how many bees were in your sample, you can estimate the number of mites per 100 bees. If there is brood in the colony when you sample, you should double this number to factor in the amount of mites in worker brood. For example, if there are 5 mites/100 bees, the total infestation is probably 10 mites/100 bees. If your colony has over 10-12 mites/100 bees, you should consider treatment.