Greetings all,
     I wanted to let everyone know that a beekeeper in the St. Louis,
Missouri area does indeed have the small hive beetle.  Dr. Ray Nabors did a
preliminary check on some samples, and said he believed them to be the
beetle, but confirmation came today from Beltsville that they were indeed
the small hive beetle.  The beetles were found in Jefferson County, about
30 miles southwest of St. Louis.  What isnt sure is if they have been in
the area for a while, or they came in with package bees.  The beekeeper
affected bought 8 packages from out of state this spring, and found them
this October in 2 of his package hives, and a nuc he bought locally this
spring.  Just a heads up to those in Missouri and surrounding areas.  Happy
Holidays to all!
Scott