With more than 47,900 registered beekeepers who own about 855,300 hives, keeping Australia’s honey bee population healthy is no mean feat.
Bee Pest Blitz is an annual month-long national campaign to increase awareness of the importance of bee biosecurity and encourage beekeepers to inspect their hives for high priority exotic and established pests.
Launched in 2023, the annual campaign calls on all Australian honey bee beekeepers to undertake biosecurity surveillance activities.
“Surveillance is key to the timely detection of new pests and provides the best chance for industries and governments to respond before pests become established and widespread,” said Sarah Hilton, bee biosecurity manager at Plant Health Australia.
Under the Honey Bee Industry Code of Practice, beekeepers are required to inspect their hives twice a year, using a method that looks for the presence of arthropod pests, including Varroa spp. (varroa) and Tropilaelaps spp. (tropilaelaps) mites.
By participating in Bee Pest Blitz, beekeepers will fulfil one of their annual bee biosecurity obligations and requirements.
This time of the year is ideal to conduct hive inspections, which are crucial for the early detection of exotic and reporting of high priority established bee pests.
Beekeepers are asked to keep samples of suspected pests and report their findings via the Exotic Plant Pest Hotline on 1800 084 881.
Surveillance reporting will be handled at a jurisdictional level and all personal information will be kept confidential.
“Maintaining honey bee health and sustainable bee populations is essential for the future production of Australian honey and supporting those agricultural sectors that depend on honey bee pollination services,” Ms Hilton said.
Bee Pest Blitz is a Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry-funded initiative, led by Plant Health Australia, and supported by the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council and all state and territory governments.
For more information, free surveillance resources and a video tutorial, visit: https://www.planthealthaustralia.com.au/beepestblitz/