We are pleased to announce a new article on Featured Creatures!

Take a sneak peek with this excerpt from the article: Honey bees throughout the world are exposed to numerous pests, parasites, and pathogens. One such parasite is Tropilaelaps spp. Delfinado & Baker (Acari: Laelapidae). Tropilaelaps is an ectoparasitic mite that feeds on the hemolymph of developing honey bees.

The giant Asian honey bee, Apis dorsata, is Tropilaelaps’ primary host. However Tropilaelaps may also be found in the colonies of other Asian honey bee species including Apis cerana and Apis florae. The western honey bee, Apis mellifera L., is not a natural host for of Tropilaelaps. However, western honey bees are parasitized by Tropilaelaps in regions where both species are present. Unfortunately the western honey bee lacks the behavioral defenses that Asian honey bee species have evolved to combat severe Tropilaelaps infestations.

Figure 1. Adult female Tropilaelaps. Figure by the Pest and Diseases Image Library, Bugwood.org

Available at: http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/MISC/BEES/Tropilaelaps.htm

Authors: Ashley N. Mortensen, Sarah Burleson, Gunasegaran Chelliah, Ken Johnson, Daniel R. Schmehl, Jamie D. Ellis, Entomology and Nematology Department, University of Florida

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