DEPI Honey Bee Emergency

Response Preparedness Geelong 16/1/15

What are the threats?

Tracheal mite Tropilaelaps mite Varroa mite

Asian honey bee Dwarf honey bee Giant honey bee

Plus others!

To achieve the best biosecurity

protection for Victoria, it is important

that we strategically focus our efforts

using the resources that we have.

National Bee Pest

Surveillance Program

DEPI Sentinel Hives

• Melbourne 5

• Westernport 1

• Geelong 5

• Portland 2

Industry DEPI partnership sentinel hives

• Melbourne 6

• Westernport 4

• Geelong 9

• Portland 1

National Bee Pest

Surveillance Program

Total Sentinel Hives

• Melbourne 11

• Westernport 5

• Geelong 14

• Portland 3

National Bee Pest

Surveillance Program

Victorian Government’s Growing

Food and Fibre initiative

DEPI Swarm Catch Boxes

• Melbourne 28

• Westernport 6

• Geelong 12

• Portland 7

• Tullamarine Airport 8

Swarm capture at Ports

Catch Boxes

Port of Geelong

2014

Sentinel Hives

DEPI presentations for Shipping Australia

includes all key 22 players in shipping and

container movement within Victoria / Australia

Victorian Government’s Growing

Food and Fibre initiative

Reality reminders…….

2013 Varroa jacobsonni interception at Sydney

Port

2014 Apis cerana interception at the Port of

Townsville

Silo dust extracting unit – Geelong Port

Brood uncapping

DEPI - DAFF Swarm Management

May 2013 – Nov 2014

QAP Tullamarine

Geelong refinery

Swanston Dock

Geelong Refinery Portland Smelter

Geelong GrainCorp

Geelong Corio Quay

East Melbourne Emerald Grain

Sandringham Marina

Port of Hastings

Westgate Park

Portland

DEPI State Quarantine Response

Team (SQRT)

102 hobby and industry members

• Unit: Work effectively in an emergency

disease or plant pest response

• Cert III in Public Safety – Biosecurity

Response operations

DEPI Staff Honey Bee Emergency

Response Team

• 33 staff trained in 2014 for SQRT field

supervisory roles

• 8 strike team apiary staff trained for rapid

emergency response

DEPI Staff Honey Bee Emergency

Response Team

Sugar Shake Varroa Surveillance

Program

177 participants

Sugar Shake Varroa Surveillance

Program

Varroa AFB SHB

Nosema sp.

Chalk-

Brood

DEPI’s priority……………….

Surveillance and preparedness for

incursions of exotic parasitic mites

and in particular, varroa.