SHB temp ban on imported bees from Italy

[Hivemaker.]

I cannot think of anything more pressing to beekeepers this winter

I agree, there are already 1,470 signatures on the petition, how many beekeepers are there in the UK?

 

[MuswellMetro]

I agree, there are already 1,470 signatures on the petition, how many beekeepers are there in the UK?

well O.0003% of thr uk population is really going to have great influency on the Tory /liberal coalition goverment isn't it, i have collected more signatures to get a bus stop moved nearer to a school

number of beekeeperss well , in at my hertfordshire apiary the NBU says that there are 150 apiaries withing 10km ( my london one says 300 withing 10km)

so thats 150 or 300 within 314 km2, and taking England to be 130400 km2 that would be between 60,000 to 120,000 apairies or perhaps double for those not on NBU site ,but 150 per 31i4km2 in yorkshire, exmoor and east angliaetc may be far to high

so how many of those apiary owners have sign up to the petition?

 

[Pete D]

I agree, there are already 1,470 signatures on the petition, how many beekeepers are there in the UK?

Not sure but the BBKA has close to 25,000 members.
Also went to a talk recently that mentioned 300,000 managed colonies in the uk plus the half a dozen or so natural beekeepers.

 

[bontbee]

Shouldn't that be the case with or without the SHB coming to the UK? Haven't enough UK beekeepers like Karl Showler said almost the same thing?

Yes! but, unfortunately, not enough beekeepers can be "bothered"....

 

[Jimmy]

Looks like the EU has banned the movement from Calabria and all of Sicily of the following:

(i)
honey bees;
(ii)
bumblebees;
(iii)
unprocessed apiculture by-products;
(iv)
beekeeping equipment;
(v)
comb honey intended for human consumption;

Full ruling here with definitions of the banned items http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/;ELX_SESSIONID=cGKQJRZWSPPGGRky53s8Wm6MgjjH51X91SdKvTQ0b82KyNnyWpZD!-844008730?uri=OJ:JOL_2014_359_R_0011


Additionally, the most recent infested apiary also contained SHB larvae.

 

[Bates]

Reports showing no new outbreaks of Beetle since December 14th http://oie.int/wahis_2/public/wahid.php/Reviewreport/Review?reportid=16925

The export ban stands until May 2015, maybe if they are controlling it the ban will be lifted.

 

[domino]

The export ban stands until May 2015, maybe if they are controlling it the ban will be lifted.

Unlikely.

 

[alanf]

Reports showing no new outbreaks of Beetle since December 14th...

The export ban stands until May 2015, maybe if they are controlling it the ban will be lifted.

Good link but it's less frequently updated than the summary table. That records a discovery on 23/12/14. http://www.izsvenezie.it/documenti/...-epidemiologica/tabella-1-casi-confermati.pdf

If the beetle is behaving like many species, a good proportion will be pupating in the ground over the coldest months. No new cases in January, even February won't mean the beetles have gone. In March/April the weather (in Southern Italy) will warm, beetles will fly and beekeepers will check hives. If we get there with no new cases then it might be a little more hopeful, but I wouldn't be taking any bets yet.

 

[madasafish]

As it is Italy, a ban will be unenforced and unenforceable.

 

[mbc]

As it is Italy, a ban will be unenforced and unenforceable.

They've been brave and severe so far, my heart really does go out to those beekeepers who have lost their stock, but they will all be heroes if the beetle is eradicated.
I wonder how many inspections are being carried out over the winter? May possibly be responsible for the slow down in detection.
I read that the demand for Spanish nucs from French beekeepers is huge, all of them trying to avoid Italian bees for obvious reasons.

Still nothing satisfactory from the damp squibs at APHID, I suppose another foreign invader would be jobs for the boys as they ineffectually monitor its progress and draw impassable lines in their minds while ffaffing around wasting money and inconvenienceing beekeepers with a contingency plan largely conceived to fool the public that they're doing something, sigh!

 

[slaykristian]

Hi all,
I'm new in this forum.
I read your tread about SHB in the south of my country .
As Madasafish and mbc say , the control of SHB is a little bit muddler .
It Seems That the investigation was stopped from January till 2 weeks ago ...
Because with an official communication due 2 weeks ago, the minister of agriculture ask to animals health Institute ( IZS , the national office / team which is in charge to manage the investigations ) , if is necessary to restart monitoring when the climatic conditions are not dangerous for hive operations .

So , all in Italy thought that investigations were continued all winter long , but after this minister's of communication , we realized that it was not so .

Knowing our tipical burocracy , and the behavior of certain kind of things in Italy , we are afraid , and we supposed that the beekeepers of Sicily and Calabria do not declare the presence of SHB, moved by the fear to lose the entire apiary (they would be obliged to reveal and pick the fire) and to receive in very poor reimbursement from institutions .

 

[Russel]

Hi all,
I'm new in this forum.
I read your tread about SHB in the south of my country .
As Madasafish and mbc say , the control of SHB is a little bit muddler .
It Seems That the investigation was stopped from January till 2 weeks ago ...
Because with an official communication due 2 weeks ago, the minister of agriculture ask to animals health Institute ( IZS , the national office / team which is in charge to manage the investigations ) , if is necessary to restart monitoring when the climatic conditions are not dangerous for hive operations .

So , all in Italy thought that investigations were continued all winter long , but after this minister's of communication , we realized that it was not so .

Knowing our tipical burocracy , and the behavior of certain kind of things in Italy , we are afraid , and we supposed that the beekeepers of Sicily and Calabria do not declare the presence of SHB, moved by the fear to lose the entire apiary (they would be obliged to reveal and pick the fire) and to receive in very poor reimbursement from institutions .

This is what we have to fear most with any pest/disease ,people's fear that they will lose all and get little in return for doing the right thing. Add to that bureaucracy, corruption and ineptitude what chance do we have?

How long was Varroa in the UK before anyone put their hand up and how did it really get hear?

 

[itma]

...
It Seems That the investigation was stopped from January till 2 weeks ago ...
Because with an official communication due 2 weeks ago, the minister of agriculture ask to animals health Institute ( IZS , the national office / team which is in charge to manage the investigations ) , if is necessary to restart monitoring when the climatic conditions are not dangerous for hive operations .

So , all in Italy thought that investigations were continued all winter long , but after this minister's of communication , we realized that it was not so .
...

Thank you for sharing this important but sad news.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Knowing our tipical burocracy , and the behavior of certain kind of things in Italy , we are afraid , and we supposed that the beekeepers of Sicily and Calabria do not declare the presence of SHB, moved by the fear to lose the entire apiary (they would be obliged to reveal and pick the fire) and to receive in very poor reimbursement from institutions .

Would of been a better to offer full compensation for any bees or equipment that were going to be destroyed, plus for loss of earnings, until completely back to the stage before the government destruction took place.

 

[slaykristian]

(sorry for some grammatical errors in my previous post)...

The compensation it's around 100-120 euros (the middle price of a honeybee nuc, without equipment as hives, loss of honey, etc...).
We have to note that in the past controls of 2014, in the hives where SHB was found, the infestation was very low. Only in one case they found a heavy infestation with also the presence of larvae. And this was an abandoned apiary.
Some experts are saying that it could means that, maybe, probably, perhaps, the SHB is meeting some difficulties to do its complete lifecycle in the Italian climatic conditions. But is too early to say this without doubts.
Even the controls on the orchards haven't shown the presence of SHB on rotting agrumes. (You know that Aethina larvae's can eat on rotting fruits).
That was a good news.

As you can imagine, these beekeepers, are contesting the fact that the SHB in their opinion is now inarrestable, and, instead to fight its diffusion by using the fire on the apiaries, they want that the institutions move in order to control and manage it.

But, in my honest opinion, I think that, yes, it's necessary to try to eradicate SHB, but my big fear is about Vespa Velutina.
Actually no one media talks about this problem. Velutina was arrived in Italy (in this case, in the north, 150 km from Genova) from France, on 2014 and it's reproducing and developing very fast. Velutina is uncontrollable and can kill a bee family in a very short time.
But no media talk about this, I don't know why...

For any translation or doubt concerning SHB fight in Italy, ask me.
I'll try to help you if I can, always with pleasure.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Velutina was arrived in Italy (in this case, in the north, 150 km from Genova) from France, on 2014 and it's reproducing and developing very fast. Velutina is uncontrollable and can kill a bee family in a very short time.

Yes, apparently it has wiped out most bees in France.

The Asian hornet - distinguishable by its dark colour and yellow feet - has already invaded France, almost wiping out its bee population and attacking humans.

http://travel.aol.co.uk/2013/09/05/swarms-of-angry-killer-asian-hornets-heading-to-britain/

Plenty of threads on this forum about them, they don't seem to be much different than our European hornets with regards bees.

 

[td4bees]

shb ban

I'm sorry but if you guys realised how relied upon importation of queens alone is to bee keeping you would not be saying this. Not only that you will destroy businesses that people have worked hard to build. Tell me now how I will feed myself and pay my rent? I guess to the doll office it is!

here I go again putting my foot in it, how to make friends and influence people why is this do you try to get home bred queens. or is it quick cheap import, profit, and to hell with the risk youre specialise in breeding bees for sale so why don't you breed them not import. or put out a tender to see if some local will bread queens for you is that not possible.

 

[mbc]

There is a post today on the Scottish forum from a German beekeeper saying there is a suspected case of shb in Switzerland
This is the other side of the alps to calabria, it's moved pdq

 

[Hivemaker.]

There is a post today on the Scottish forum from a German beekeeper saying there is a suspected case of shb in Switzerland
This is the other side of the alps to calabria, it's moved pdq

Read that as well, was thinking perhaps it might be an April 1st thing, hope it is not true.

 

[B+.]

, perhaps, the SHB is meeting some difficulties to do its complete lifecycle in the Italian climatic conditions. But is too early to say this without doubts.

I read on Beebase that SHB had been tested at a variety of temperatures to see if it could survive an English winter: it could. I doubt that your conditions would be less hospitable than ours.

I also read that FERA had tested a variety of treatments and found namatodes killed SHB in the soil. Are they using these?
http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.a...ojectCode&SortOrder=Asc&Paging=10#Description