Background
The establishment of Varroa destructor (Varroa) and other exotic Honey bee mites (Varroa jacobsoni, Tropilaelaps mites, and Tracheal mites) in Australia are a major threat to our healthy bee population and the essential pollination services they provide.
Australia has long remained free of bee mites due to stringent biosecurity measures. However, in June 2022, Varroa was detected in eastern Australia. Efforts to eradicate Varroa were ultimately unsuccessful. The Australian honey bee industry, alongside pollination dependant industries and government, is now transitioning to management of Varroa. As Varroa spreads across Australia’s eastern states, beekeepers will need to regularly monitor Varroa mite infestations to effectively control further outbreaks. Other parts of Australia, such as Western Australia and Tasmania, are isolated by natural barriers and will need to maintain effective biosecurity and surveillance measures to prevent the introduction of Varroa.
Under the Catalysing Australia’s Biosecurity initiative, the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, in partnership with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and Horticulture Innovation Australia are seeking to generate a comprehensive evaluation of advanced detection and monitoring technologies.
Challenge
We invite innovators, problem solvers, and innovative organisations to provide advanced technological solutions for the surveillance of mites and monitoring of Varroa mites.
This project aims to conduct field studies of innovative, emerging, near commercially available and commercially available technologies (Technology Readiness Level 4 – 9) to understand the efficacy of these technologies to detect and/or monitor European Honey bee mites.
Detection technologies will undergo a desktop evaluation for their ability to provide specific and sensitive presence/absence information for V. destructor in managed bee hives.
Monitoring technologies will undergo a desktop evaluation for their ability to identify when Varroa mite infestations exceed relevant threshold levels to support management decisions.
This study primarily focuses on V. destructor, but also aims to identify technologies for detecting or monitoring V. jacobsoni, Tropilaelaps mites, and Tracheal mites.
The overall objective of the project is to generate an independent evaluation of advanced technologies field tested in Australia for the beekeeping industry. This evaluation, supported by experts’ recommendations, aims to assist in the detection and/or monitoring of European Honey bee mites.
These technologies and methods will fall within the following categories for detection and/or monitoring:
- visual sensing
- chemical sensing
- molecular sensing
- other hive detection sensors.
This project leverages current industry research to collaborate with industry, state and territory governments and research corporations, benefiting the Honey bee and pollination sector.
Key Success Criteria:
- Scalability and adaptability: The technology should have the potential to be scalable across different geographical locations and climates across Australia and have the potential to support the management, monitoring or detection of European honey bee mites.
- Affordability: The solution should be cost-effective where reasonable, making it accessible to beekeepers with varying scales and budgets.
- Science-backed validity: The technology should be or have the potential to achieve validity that can be verified by expert researchers.
- Support and Maintenance: Adequate support and maintenance services should be provided to ensure continuous operation and address any issues promptly.
What we aren’t interested in:
- Technologies that fall outside of the above categories.
- Generic hive health technologies that cannot measure target pests.
- Technologies that have not reached Technology Readiness Level 4.
What's in it for you?
A successful collaboration could mean expansion into the Australian ecosystem, trialling innovative technologies in unique, complex climates and ecosystems, as well as public federal government endorsement and support in connecting you to stakeholders.