Problems with the introduction of exotic bee species and races.

 

As far as beekeepers are concerned, throughout the 20th century the other man’s grass was always greener – bees in other countries were viewed as more prolific, gentler, more disease resistant, less prone to swarming, more yellow, blacker. Indeed many beekeepers still think this way, and this has led 1 Bradbear, 2005. Bees and their role in forest livelihoods to the disasters of recent years, when races of bees, or diseases and parasites of honeybees have been spread around the world with serious consequences for the beekeeping industries, and indigenous populations of bees, in many countries. This has been caused entirely by the movement of honeybee colonies by man. For example, the mite Varroa destructor is a ‘natural’ parasite of Asian honeybees that survive in the presence of the mite. However, when particular races of the mite are introduced to European Apis mellifera honeybees (the bee used for beekeeping in most industrialized countries), the whole colony will be killed unless action is taken by the beekeeper. These mites have now been introduced to many beekeeping countries and, for example, most populations of wild honeybees throughout Europe have been killed during the last 20 years or so. Mites become resistant to medicines developed for their treatment, and research is underway in many countries to find better, integrated control methods, or resistant strains of bees. Recently another predator, the small hive beetle, Aethina tumida, has been spread from Africa (where it is a relatively harmless pest for bees) to honeybee colonies in the USA, where it leads to destruction of European honeybee colonies. The introduction of African bees to south America was initially viewed as a disaster, as the introduced African bees survived very well in their new habitat, and their population quickly expanded through south and central America, replacing existing populations of European honeybees, there were less well suited to the tropical environment. However, today some view this amazing, dramatic event in a more sympathetic light – as beekeeping industries have learned to adapt to the African bees. The Brazilian scientist who introduced the African bees, Professor Warwick Kerr, has with hindsight, expressed the opinion that it would have been wiser to have focussed efforts on the Americas’ indigenous, stinglessbees (Bradbear, 1993). Honeybees and used beekeeping equipment must never be moved from one area to another without expert consideration of the consequences. Just a very few regions remain without introduced honeybee diseases, and these are mainly in developing countries. It will be highly beneficial for these countries if they can retain their stocks of disease-free honeybees: they may in the future be able to market their disease free stocks, or export disease free queen bees, and it makes possibilities for organic honey and beeswax production cheaper and easier.