Virus linked to honeybee decline
Scientists have revealed that the worldwide decline of honeybees has been linked to a bloodsucking parasite, which has hugely increased the global prevalence of a fatal bee virus.
The researchers have warned that the virus is now one of the "most widely distributed and contagious insect viruses on the planet," due to the part played by the varroa mite in its spread. Furthermore, the virus poses an ongoing threat to colonies even after the mites have been eradicated from hives.
Varroa destructor arrived in the UK in 1990, after spreading across the world from Asia during the last 50 years, and has been implicated in the halving of bee numbers since then.
Scientists have been able to track the spread of the disease since the mite arrived in Hawaii in 2007. Within a year of the arrival of varroa destructor, 274 of 319 colonies on Oahu island - 65% - were wiped out, with further numbers lost across Big Island the following year.
Stephen Martin, from the University of Sheffield, led the research which is published in the journal Science. He commented: "We were able to watch the emergence of the disease for the first time ever."
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
