Do Varroa destructor mites transfer European foulbrood (Melissococcus pluton)?
(G. Kanbar, W. Engels, G. Winkelmann). The authors pointed out that Varroa mites that enter a brood cell bite into the larva and pupa to feed and keep the wound open for some time. They used an electron microscope to examine the mite feeding wounds on a number of hosts and reported that 15% of the sites contained a large number of bacteria. These bacteria were identified as M. pluton, the causative agent of European Foulbrood. Spores of this bacterium were also identified on the bodies and mouthparts of the mites and the authors concluded that they were “clearly transferred to honey bee larva…during biting and feeding.” The take home message: in addition to the well-known oral means of foulbrood infection caused by nurse bees feeding larvae, Varroa mites constitute a second route of infection. Thus, the answer to the question posed in the title? Yes. Mites can tire males: wind tunnel test with Varroa destructor parasitized drones (P. Duay, W. Engels) The authors first note that in Germ
