In recent posts, I have noticed many people still refer to Varroa as Varroa
jacobsoni.
I would like to say that Varroa jacobsoni as described from Java, has been
renamed
We now, for sake of precision, should refer to Varroa destructor
The explanations of that change can be found in the Proceedings of the 36th
Apimondia Apicultural Congress, Vancouver, canada, pp.59-62, September 1999
which was a presentation by Dr Denis Anderson, Research Scool of Biological
Sciences, Australian national University, Canberra.
Doctor Anderson refers to evidence coming from size discrepancies between
mites on the original host (Apis cerana) and those found on Apis mellifera.
Then, it was discovered that V.jacobsoni found on Java
could not reproduce on Apis mellifera brood.
He concludes that Varroa is represented around the world by 5 separate
species. Only one has spread from Apis cerana to become a serious parasite
of Apis mellifera. This mite is not Varroa jacobsoni as described from Java
and had to be renamed.

André Simoneau, d.v.m.