Yes, you read well this is a Mite-A-Thon. This collaborative effort will help to raise awareness about honey bee colony varroa infestations in North America through effective monitoring methods.

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What? Mite-A-Thon is a national effort to collect mite infestation data and to visualize varroa infestations in honey bee colonies across North America within a one week window.

Who? All beekeepers will be asked to participate, creating a rich distribution of sampling sites in Canada, the United States, and Mexico.

Why? The parasitic mite, Varroa destructor (varroa), and the viruses it vectors is a significant driver of this honey bee colony mortality. Yet, indicators suggest that many beekeepers are not monitoring honey bee colony varroa infestations and therefore not able to connect infestation to colony loss.

When? The week of September 9, 2017, with a practice test during summer 2017

Contact info? Miteathon@pollinator.org. 415-362-1137

How? TO DO: Determine your preferred method of testing for mites and commit to a day for testing, either individually or through beekeeping organizations, and report your data

Online resources and info:

https://bip2.beeinformed.org/mitecheck

http://honeybeehealthcoalition.org/varroa/

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