Has anyone used Amitraz for treating varroa?

[tonyofarr]

I am looking at different varroa treatments once I have removed my honey (I will hopefully get some this year). I read somewhere that Amitraz is now licensed for use in the UK and that previously it was available for use under the cascade system.

I have no experience of using Amitraz, nor do I know anyone else who has used it. Has anyone here used it, was it effective and more importantly how did it affect the bees ? Also where was it bought and how much would it cost to treat each colony? Thanks.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

why on earth would you want to consider it for routine treatment? look at something a little less harsh but really effective like Oxalic sublimation.

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Wonders if residue's of amitraz persist in wax and honey

 

[Hivemaker.]

Wonders if residue's of amitraz persist in wax and honey

No.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

I am looking at different varroa treatments once I have removed my honey (I will hopefully get some this year). I read somewhere that Amitraz is now licensed for use in the UK and that previously it was available for use under the cascade system.

I have no experience of using Amitraz, nor do I know anyone else who has used it. Has anyone here used it, was it effective and more importantly how did it affect the bees ? Also where was it bought and how much would it cost to treat each colony? Thanks.

Not sure it's a good choice of treatment. We've seen resistance develop against previous synthetic treatments. This might be another saga starting. No matter how detailed the instructions might be there's always a few comedians who think they know better than the manufacturer, under dose and the rot starts.
There's thymol based treatment, formic acid and now oxalic acid sublimation or trickling.
Oxalic based treatment costs pence per hive

 

[Truble]

To answer the OP question. I have used amitraz in the past. It's good and very effective no effect on the bees except they lost their blood suckers. You need to find a vets practice that will issue you with it.
One source is a veterinary practice in Scotland, contact Dr. Thurlow on [email protected].
I recall it works out about £5 per hive... the cost of a jar of honey.... so pretty cheap. They recommend usage for 3 years and then change to something else for the next three years.
I don't use it at the moment as have gone over to pressurized OA vaporization.
Hope that is of some use.

 

[mazzamazda]

I've used it for the last 2 years in the form of a homemade treatment "sytraz" 1 litre bottle treats around 150 hives. Amazing treatment, I last treated in February, and still have no signs of varroa, it does apparently stay in the wax for a while, no resistance as yet, no queen loss. Its really good for the colonies with a high varroa load.

 

[Heather]

When do you guys do Apiguard, if at all. Late August or early Sept?.
I know this year the flow is late, but am being questioned about advising early Sept as too late for treatment.
Fortunately I have minimal drop so just doing Dec sublimation, but I worry about others who are beginners with maybe heavier drop. Balancing act between treating during honey flow which seems late this year, but early enough to build winter bees up.
In South east UK

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Apiguard on mid September at the earliest around here

 

[Gilberdyke John]

When do you guys do Apiguard, if at all. Late August or early Sept?.
I know this year the flow is late, but am being questioned about advising early Sept as too late for treatment.
Fortunately I have minimal drop so just doing Dec sublimation, but I worry about others who are beginners with maybe heavier drop. Balancing act between treating during honey flow which seems late this year, but early enough to build winter bees up.
In South east UK

Our association carries out treatment at the teaching apiary in August but personally I feel it's too early, cutting short the harvest period. In the absence of a heavy mite drop I would agree September is about right.
Or use MAQS or sublimated OA

 

[Madge]

why on earth would you want to consider it for routine treatment? look at something a little less harsh but really effective like Oxalic sublimation.

Why do you think it's 'harsh'? That's not what I've observed with my bees. it's effective and it does not affect the wax or even the honey (but I use it after the honey harvest).

 

[oliver90owner]

Apiguard is, for cropping colonies, limited to after the crop is removed in order to avoid contamination. So dates for application depends on more than just a date. Needs thinking about.

 

[Dutchman]

I have used Amitraz for the last 3 years now, got it while on holidays in France (Apivar) where it is less than half the price and used it after taking the honey off in late August. It has always been very effective , better than the thymol based treatment that need a higher temperature to be effective . I have noticed no adverse effect on the bees or the queen.But for next 3 years have to use something else , in Brittany they sell it on a 3 year rotation to avoid resistance building up

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Why do you think it's 'harsh'? That's not what I've observed with my bees. it's effective and it does not affect the wax or even the honey (but I use it after the honey harvest).

Harsher than OA that's for sure, it's an insecticide

why on earth would you want to consider it for routine treatment?

it seems that's what everyone wants with this stuff - when will we ever learn, just takes a few clowns slathering it willy nilly over their colonies because they're too da*ned lazy to work a bit on their IPM and we have resistant mites all over the shop again.
Why do you think it's prescription only?
OK as a one-off last resort but that's about it IMHO

Amitraz has been found to have an insect repellent effect, works as an insecticide and also as a pesticide synergist.[3] Its effectiveness is traced back on alpha-adrenergic agonist activity, interaction with octopamine receptors of the central nervous system and inhibition of monoamine oxidases and prostaglandin synthesis.[4] Therefore, it leads to overexcitation and consequently paralysis and death in insects.

Last time I looked, bees were insects

Amitraz is a pharmaceutical, veterinary, and agricultural product which is used worldwide under numerous generic names as an acaricide and insecticide. Because of its widespread use amitraz poisoning has come emerged as a cause of childhood poisoning during the past decade,

Lots more on the web on growing concerns about Amitraz in general if you cNan be bothered to wade through it - and people get their knickers in a twist about the odd whiff of sublimated OA!!!

Slather it all over your bees if that's what you want, but mine seem to be able to get along fine with my obviously outdated inefficient insecticide free treatments

 

[tonyofarr]

We are very aware of resistance as my wife has a degree in environmental science, which is why we are looking at different options in the first place. We find the MAQs effective at bumping off varroa BUT it tends to affect the queens when you want them laying up bees for the winter and you can't always have or buy replacement queens.

It sounds like they have learnt from what happened with bayvarol and apistan if they are limiting treatment to 3 years at a time.

We only ever use the oxalic acid in winter but don't want to be tied to sublimating repeatedly over the next few months. We were told last week that my mother-in-law needs open-heart surgery, we will find out more after she has another ecg this week. My wife wants to go and look after her after she comes out of hospital because she reckons if she doesn't she will start moving sacks of compost around a few days after having her chest cracked open. The consultant says he wants to operate within 2 months, so I could be looking at checking hives, extracting honey and looking after 2 young kids during the holidays, so I need a simple effective one-off treatment for varroa.

 

[MuswellMetro]

To answer the OP question. I have used amitraz in the past. It's good and very effective no effect on the bees except they lost their blood suckers. You need to find a vets practice that will issue you with it.
One source is a veterinary practice in Scotland, contact Dr. Thurlow on [email protected].
I recall it works out about £5 per hive... the cost of a jar of honey.... so pretty cheap. They recommend usage for 3 years and then change to something else for the next three years.
I don't use it at the moment as have gone over to pressurized OA vaporization.
Hope that is of some use.

amitraz was approved by the VMD as apitraz500 in April 2016, you no longer need to go through the cascade route

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Have fun people. I am indifferent to resistance concerns because none of these complex molecules are going anywhere near my bees. I am particularly enjoying the fact that it is an insect REPELLENT.

 

[mazzamazda]

OA needs to be brood free to work effectively. I for one would prefer to treat with anything rather than losing bees. Amitraz is effective!

 

[Gilberdyke John]

OA needs to be brood free to work effectively. I for one would prefer to treat with anything rather than losing bees. Amitraz is effective!

Please read up on the use during brooded periods of 3 treatments by sublimation 5 days apart.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Harsher than OA that's for sure, it's an insecticide

but mine seem to be able to get along fine with my obviously outdated inefficient insecticide free treatments

It is all about the dosage, especially when treating a bug that lives on a bug.

Both Thymol and Oxalic acid are, and can be used as insecticides.