Varroa mite detected in Victoria on ship at Port of Melbourne

EXCLUSIVE: THE dreaded varroa mite — described as one of the biggest threats to Australian agriculture — has been detected in Victoria.

Destructive force: The world’s worst honey bee pest, varroa mite, has been found on a ship that berthed at the Port of Melbourne.

EXCLUSIVE: THE dreaded varroa mite — described as one of the biggest threats to Australian agriculture — has been detected in Victoria.

Agriculture Victoria today confirmed varroa mite, the world’s worst honey bee pest, had been found on a ship that berthed at the Port of Melbourne.

Acting chief plant health officer Nigel Ainswroth said the mite was found on Wednesday on a small colony of European honey bees that were found on a container.

Fortunately the captain of the vessel had noticed dead bees on board before arriving in Australia.

In accordance with quarantine protocol, he notified the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, whose staff were waiting to inspect the ship when it pulled into the Port on June 23.

No bees were found until a crate carrying industrial electrical equipment was partially opened and staff notified bees flying around it.

“The crate was quickly secured and the next day the colony was killed by insecticide treatment,” Dr Ainsworth said.

Scientists are working to determine the species but suspect the pest was varroa destructor, often cited as the most serious threat to the viability of the Australian honey bee industry.

State and federal agriculture departments are conducting surveillance within a 2km radius of the Port.

“We’re going out to 2km which is taking a very precautionary approach,” Dr Ainsworth said. “But we want to provide surety to the bee industry.

“The weather in Melbourne has been very cold and overcast so it’s extremely unlikely the bees went anywhere at all. They were extremely sluggish and lethargic.”

The Australian Honeybee Industry Council has been notified and is working closely with government authorities.

Australia has been free of the pest that has caused billions of dollars’ damage to agriculture worldwide.

The mite was last detected on Australian shores in Townsville in 2016. The hive of 5000 Asian honey bees that the mite was discovered on was quickly destroyed and no further detections have been made since.

GoFarm Australia principal Liam Lenaghan recently described varroa mite as the biggest single biosecurity threat to Australian agriculture — even bigger than foot and mouth disease in cattle.

Mr Lenaghan said varroa mites could result in the collapse of the European honey bee population in Australia, which would have huge ramifications on the nation’s multi-billion dollar horticultural industry.

“Especially vulnerable to this crisis is Australia’s big growth horticultural crops: almonds, avocadoes, blueberries, cherries, citrus and macadamias,” he said.

“Bees, like water, are a critical input to their production.”

The European honey bee plays a key role in the pollination of two thirds of Australia’s horticultural and agricultural crops, including nut crops, canola and cotton.

The varroa mite is a deadly parasite of the European honey bee and is prevalent in every continent of the world except Australia.

In some countries, the mite has wiped out 95-100 per cent of the feral European honey bee population.