As Australia ends fight against bee-killing pest, critics say ‘impact will be felt for decades’

The Australian government says its US$64 million eradication plan has failed to stop the destructive Varroa mite from spreading

The pest will cause significant economic damage to agricultural industries that rely on honeybees for pollination, researchers say

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A Varroa mite on the back of a honeybee. Australia’s government says it has failed to eradicate the pest. Photo: Nikon’s Small World

Published: 4:55pm, 20 Sep 2023

Australia on Wednesday abandoned its fight to eradicate the destructive Varroa mite, an invasive parasite responsible for the collapse of honeybee populations across the planet.

Desperate to keep Varroa out of the country, authorities have destroyed more than 14,000 infected beehives since the tiny red-brown pest was first detected north of Sydney in June 2022.

The government on Wednesday conceded its US$64 million eradication plan could not stop the mite from spreading, saying the country’s beekeepers should now prepare to live with the incursion.

“The recent spike in new detections have made it clear that the Varroa mite infestation is more widespread and has also been present for longer than first thought,” officials said in a statement.

Australia was one of the last major beekeeping countries to successfully keep Varroa at bay.

Smaller than a peppercorn, Varroa mites attach themselves to honeybees and slowly feast on their body tissue from the outside – eventually spreading through hives and causing colony collapse.