EXTENSION SERVICE UPDATE----
 
APICULTURE AWARENESS   VOL 3, ISSUE 10
 
 
 
AFRICANIZED HONEY BEES FOUND IN RIO GRADE RIVER VALLEY NEAR
HIDALGO, TEXAS
 
     WASHINGTON, DC, Oct. 17--Officials with the U.S. Department
of Agriculture today confirmed that a swarm of Africanized honey
bees (AHB) has been detected and destroyed in the Rio Grande
River Valley near Hidalgo, Texas.  Africanized honey bees have
been moving northward from South America since 1957.
 
     "The Africanized honey bee swarm detected near Hidalgo is
the first such swarm found to have crossed the U.S.-Mexico
border."  said James W. Glosser, administrator of USDA's Animal
Plant Health Inspection Service.  "We are conducting surveys and
intensified trapping to determine whether other AHB swarms are
present.  APHIS is committed to helping agricultural officials in
Texas eliminate initial swarms."
 
     Officials with USDA's Agricultural Research Service found
the swarm on Oct. 15 during a regular check of ARS swarm traps in
the area.  These traps, which have a chemical lure or pheromone
to attract and capture migrating swarms, have been in place for a
number of years to help ARS researchers gather data on honey bee
swarms.
 
     The swarm was destroyed and samples of the honey bees were
identified by the ARS laboratory in Weslaco, Texas, and confirmed
as Africanized by the ARS Bee Identification Laboratory in
Beltsville, MD.  The ARS facility in Beltsville is the only one
authorized to confirm AHB identifications for USDA.
 
     "Although this is the first time we have trapped a natural
introduction of Africanized honey bees in the United States,"
Glosser said,m "we have intercepted and eliminated AHB swarms
artificially introduced on ships arriving from South and Central
America many times since 1979.  The Agricultural Research Service
has been instrumental in identifying these swarms."
 
     Glosser said APHIS, the federal agency responsible for
protecting U.S. agriculture from foreign pests and disease, will
work with the Texas Apiary Inspection Service based at Texas A&M
University to eliminate other initial swarms if they are
detected.  APHIS and ARS will continue to inspect honey bee traps
in south Texas to monitor the spread of the AHB front through
Mexico into the United States.
 
SOURCE:  News Release, Office of Press and Media Relations, USDA
       (202)447-4026
 
AHB INFORMATION RELEASE FROM APHIS
 
On October 15, a swarm of AHB was found and destroyed near
Hidalgo, Texas. This was a pioneer swarm which normally is found
well in advance of the main AHB front.  The honey bees were
captured in a swarm trap operated by the Agricultural Research
Service (ARS), USDA.  Samples were identified at the ARS
laboratory in Texas and confirmed as Africanized on October 17 by
the ARS laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland.
 
A honey bee delimiting survey is being implemented in a 2-mile
radius of the find as called for in the joint Texas/APHIS AHB
action plan.  A press briefing will be scheduled for October 18,
at a location in Texas to be announced.
 
Mr. Otha Barham of our Domestic and Emergency Operations staff in
Hyattsville, Maryland, has been designated as the contact person
for APHIS headquarters.  His telephone number is Area Code (301)
436-8247.
 
SOURCE:  Richard R. Backus for B. Glen Lee, Deputy Administrator,
Plant Protection and Quarantine, APHIS
 
 
AFRICANIZED HONEY BEE (AHB) UPDATE
October 4, 1990
 
More traps have been added to the PPQ trap line that runs from
Sullivan City, Texas, to Rio Grande City, Texas.  There are 257
traps in place in seven trap lines.
 
Janna Evans, with the office of Legislative and Public Affairs in
Hyattsville, was in the Rio Grande Valley the week of September
24-28, 1990.  During that time, she contacted schools, radio
stations, TV stations, city managers, and county agents and
presented to them information about APHIS trap lines, the
identification laboratory, and AHB.
 
Contact was made with the Harlingen and Brownsville School
Districts.  A request was made to include honey bees in their
science classes.  The Harlingen School District has designated
the week of November 12-16, 1990, as "Bee Awareness Week."
 
During that week, local beekeepers and the AHB Program Manager
will visit the local schools to give presentations and answer
questions related to bees, AHB's, and the traps.
 
The Brownsville School District will video tape "special
messages" targeted to children from Kindergarten to seventh
grades.  Why the traps are in the field, to leave them alone, and
what to expect after the AHB arrives will be emphasized.
 
A positive AHB find was reported from Linares, Nuevo Leon,
Mexico. This is the first AHB find in Nuevo Leon.  The town of
Linares is located about 120 miles southwest of Rio Grande City
and approximately 75 miles east of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.
The State of Tamaulipas has established a trap line from Nuevo
Laredo to Cd. Mier, Tamaulipas, which parallels the border
between the U.S. and Mexico.
 
SOURCE:  Elba Quintero, Africanized Honey Bee, Program Manager,
         APHIS (512)427-8527
 
JAMES E. TEW Ph.D.
National Program Leader, Apiculture
Extension Service, USDA
 
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