here is a new update on situation and its effects on Canada. the following is an email circulating 
from Hawaii dept of Ag. 




I have been advised by Dr. Medhat Nasr to relate these results to you regarding shipments of 
honeybee queens from the Big Island of Hawaii after the new finding of varroa mite on the island 
of Oahu, State of Hawaii. 

These are the result of a recent inspection of honey bees apiaries on the Big Island of Hawaii used 
for shipping queens to Canada and mainland US. All samples collected on April 9-10, 2007. Adult 
honey bees were collected from the brood chambers and processed for varroa mite using the 
alcohol shaking procedure. The distance between the Kona Queen to the Hawaiian Queen is about 
57.2 km.  This recent survey on the Kona side of the Big Island of Hawaii is to reinforce the 
negative finding of varroa and tropilaelaps mites during my last survey in January 2007. 

1) Kona Queen Company: 
No varroa mite or tropilaelaps in Kona Queen samples [(honey bee sample size: two apiaries, 8 
hives, 581 ± 107.2 workers per hive ( Mean ± SD)] 

2) Big Island Queens: 
No varroa mite or tropilaelaps in Big Island Queens samples. Big Island Queen apiaries are 4.8 km 
south of Kona Queen.   
(three yards, three apiaries, sample size: 470 ± 68.2 workers per hive) 

3) Hawaiian Honeybees: 
No varroa mite or tropilaelaps in Hawaiian Honeybee samples. Hawaiian Honey Bee apiary is 12.1 
km south of Big Island Queen. 
(one apiary, four hives, sample size: 563.8 ± 140.8 workers per hive) 

4) Hawaiian Queens Company: 
No varroa mite or tropilaelaps in Hawaiian Queen samples. Hawaiian Queen is 40.3 km from  the 
Hawaiian Honey Bee. 
(one apiary, four hives, sample size: 421.5 ± 116.2 workers per hive). 


Kona Queen and Hawaiian Queens companies are preparing shipments to Canada and we urgently 
need your approval to proceed on these shipments.   
We appreciate your effort to help us with the varroa mite situation. 
Aloha, 
Mohsen 
_____________________________________________
Dr. Mohsen M. Ramadan
Exploratory Entomologist
State of Hawaii Department of Agriculture
Division of Plant Industry, Plant Pest Control Branch
1428 South King Street, Honolulu, HAWAII 96814 (USA) 
Tel: (808) 973 9526
Fax: (808) 973 9533
email: [log in to unmask] 

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