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Author Topic: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening  (Read 4087 times)

Offline greenbtree

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Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« on: June 19, 2011, 01:38:56 am »
I have bees crawling on the ground and dieing around my one hive (the only one that made it through the Winter here!).  I did a three day mite drop count and did not find any Varroa.  I have a Tracheal mite problem, correct?  I put in a grease patty that I added about three drops of Tea Tree oil to (It's what I had available and I figured I needed to get something in the hive right away.)  I think long term re-queening is best from what I have heard - how long should I treat before re-queening?  Or is a bred queen old enough to be past the point when tracheal mites infect them?  Is menthol oil available or do you have to use something like peppermint?

JC
"Rise again, rise again - though your heart it be broken, or life about to end.  No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again!"

Offline AliciaH

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #1 on: June 19, 2011, 10:35:57 pm »
You may want to have your bees tested.  We just had an apprentice student in our club with crawling bees and when his test results came back his hive was negative for tracheal and positive for nosema.  The dysentery hit about three days after he sent the sample in.


Offline AllenF

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #2 on: June 19, 2011, 11:23:16 pm »
Bees die when they get old.   And they age really quick in the summer working themselves to death.  You may be looking at old bees with nothing wrong.

Offline greenbtree

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #3 on: June 20, 2011, 02:08:49 am »
I have two other hives that I started from packages this Spring.  I don't have bees crawling and dying around those hives like this, and I didn't see this around my hives last year.  Also, the bees don't look and act like old bees - no tattered wings, darker color, etc., they seem more confused and try to fly but can't.  I'll have to see about testing.

JC
"Rise again, rise again - though your heart it be broken, or life about to end.  No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again!"

Offline BjornBee

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #4 on: June 20, 2011, 02:08:02 pm »
T-mites have not been a problem for a number of years. If you scan down this page of this link, you can see that a large testing sample taken for a CCD research study, found T-mites almost non-existant.

http://www.bjornapiaries.com/researchatbjorns.html

I would be shocked to find out that you had bees infested with t-mites.

I would be more inclined to think that your bees got into some spray.

Good luck.
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Offline greenbtree

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #5 on: June 24, 2011, 01:48:58 pm »
I have the State Apairist coming out Tuesday.  Boy, I hope it's not spray - but it would be my luck if it is.  Besides the modern spray dangers this is the kind of area where someone would say "I found this in Grandpa's garage, it always worked for him..."  Of course without expensive testing can't really be SURE it's spray - more of a "ruled out Tracheal Mites, ruled out Nosmea" kind of thing from what I understand.
I will update later.

JC
"Rise again, rise again - though your heart it be broken, or life about to end.  No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again!"

Offline sc-bee

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #6 on: June 24, 2011, 01:57:16 pm »
>Of course without expensive testing can't really be SURE it's spray - more of a "ruled out Tracheal Mites, ruled out Nosmea" kind of thing from what I understand.
I will update later.

State apiarist may sample the bees and send them off @ no charge to you. I know Beltsville samples for disease are free to the beekeeper except for the shipping. Beltsville however, only test for diseases.
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Offline greenbtree

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #7 on: June 30, 2011, 01:20:08 am »
Inspector came out - real nice guy.  My hive with the crawlers is really struggling.  Inspector said (and showed me) evidence of EFB, he said that shouldn't cause the crawlers though.  These bees did barely make it through Winter - very stressed (my fault).  My package hive with the Russian queen was a complete fail - no queen, drones and laying workers everywhere, also signs of EFB, one cell was ropey, kinda.  My last hive a package Italian looked GREAT.  To protect that hive, the failed Russian went right into the soapy water bucket - no point in even shaking them out, it was that bad.  Inspector said stress and used equipment probably caused my problems.  A frame of comb and jars of bees are off to the testing lab. They will test for diseases and Tracheal mites just in case.  Will hear back in a week or so.  Antibiotic advised for EFB, if AFB it's bonfire time.  Said can treat AFB also, but because AFB produces persistant spores, the "bees will look nice and shiny on the antibiotic, and it will pop right back up when you stop".  At least they won't show up like a scene out of "Men in Black" and burn all my hives even if it is AFB.  I won't mess around if it is though - infected hives go bye-bye.  Oh, he also said that it might be something they are calling for no better term "Snot-Brood"  which sound like more of a combination of factors thing.  I saved my sticky board from my three day mite count drop and he verified no Varroa present at this time - go figure.

JC
"Rise again, rise again - though your heart it be broken, or life about to end.  No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again!"

Offline greenbtree

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Re: Tracheal mite treatment and re-queening
« Reply #8 on: June 30, 2011, 01:22:35 am »
Oh, and I have to get some reading glasses that will stay on my head under a veil.  I could have caught some of this sooner if I could just SEE.  (There was a lot of me squinting and him pointing during the inspection).

JC
"Rise again, rise again - though your heart it be broken, or life about to end.  No matter what you've lost, be it a home, a love, a friend, like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again!"

 

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