Australia: Varroa mite-resistant bee breeding could be the key to resisting the deadly pest

Bee Genetics director Corrine Jordan says a new pheromone spray developed in the US may help with breeding varroa mite resistance into Australian bees. Picture supplied Honey bees have a knack for sniffing out food and foe, and it's this great sense of smell that could save them from the deadly pest varroa mite in Australia. Bee breeder Corinne Jordan, who runs Bee Genetics in Brisbane, says a new pheromone spray she's trialling - developed in the US - may be a "ground breaking" solution to prevent a "catastrophic collapse" of honey bee colonies. She believes the intervention approach, which could help breed resistance to varroa, is a lower-cost alternative to the current approach, which involves eradicating infected hives in key zones of NSW. Varroa has been found in much of Asia, Europe, the US, South America and New Zealand, but in June 2022, the industry's worst fears were realised when varroa was detected in Newcastle. While it has been contained, some in the industry believe ...