cross-posted for discussion purposes:

>> Forum: sci.agriculture.beekeeping
>> Thread: Varroa destructor ,TERMINATOR !!!
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Subject:
Varroa destructor ,TERMINATOR !!!
Date:
05/06/2000
Author:
Jan Visser <[log in to unmask]>

Varroa jacobsoni has possible 5 species. The Varroa destructor is the mite
from mainland Asia, 2
members of this species are harmful to the European Honey bee. The Java mite
first described in
1904 as Varroa jacobsoni is harmles to the European Honeybee it is the
Malaysia-Indonesia type.

It is a technological challenge to find a solution for removing Varroa
destructor!!

Perhaps electronicaly we might solve this problem through Static
electricity, by charging only the
outgoing bees and letting incoming bees unhindered back into the hive
through One Way tunnels with
no static charge because we do want to lose the pollen or nectar. We would
train the bees to come in
to the middle of the landingboard which they do naturally with nectar and
pollen. They walk through
the black One Way tunnel unhindered. Outgoing bees have to walk through the
outside white One
Way tunnels on the landingboard and will be charged with Static Electricity
till their hairs stand on
end!!!
The bees will not notice this, but the Varroa will as it has the same Static
charge as the bees and will
be repelled. Remember that equal static electric charges repel each other.
To make the One Way
tunnels we have to fit slanted soft brushes inside on top of these tunnels.
The way the hairs of the
brushes run determines ingoing or outgoing traffic. The hairs of the brushes
are not meant to remove
the Varroa but they can be of help. Underneath these tunnels is an empty
space with real thin wire or
mesh connecting to the opening underneath it. The bottom of this space can
be slanted towards the
outside to clean itself from mites and other debris. The wire or mesh has to
be spaced accordingly to
the size of the mite. The tunnels can be made from Nylon or some other
plastic with holes or
rectangular spaces the size of one single drone. The holes are across and
parallel all along the full
length of the entrance perhaps in 3 separate sections. Two sections for
outgoing bees on the outside
white in color and One section in the middle black in color for incoming
bees. Bees naturally make a
static electric charge by flying and attracting the pollen towards them when
collecting it from the
flowers. To make this static charge a special constructed solar cell has to
be made for this but that is
another story!

In the hope I might hear your comments.

Kind regards, JAN VISSER from "The Land Down Under"