Allen said:

> Apparently there are different varieties of the Aethina tumida and the
> ones in Aus come from a different region than those extant in the USA
> and are visably different.  I understand that some Australians are aware
> of that.  We weren't, at least on the beekeeper level.

I think that everyone needs to cut the Australians some slack on this.
Look how long it took actual entomologists to figure out that the "Varroa
jackobsoni" causing hive losses was really a different type of varroa
(Varroa destructor).

Also, recall that the bulk of Australia's revenue for beekeeping comes
from export.  Even if someone suspected that they were looking at a
different beetle, they would hesitate to "cause a scare" by being the
first to claim that their beetles were not the same as small hive beetles
found elsewhere.

The often nonsensical rules of the "phytosanitary" and "biosanitary"
controls imposed under the WTO agreements are hard on a country
that has a "new and unique" pest.  Any other country that does not
have that same pest can limit or block imports from the area unlucky
enough to have such a pest.  Since the quarantine imposed in New
South Wales was lifted in November 2002, this would mean that
other countries would be well within their rights to assume that all
of Australia was "infected".  The fact that it is impossible for all of
New South Wales, let alone the entire continent, to be infected at
this time would be "irrelevant".

        jim