The original host for varroa was (and is) Apis cerana, a species native to subtropical and tropical Asia. The mite has been found in phoretic associations with other insect species (Diptera, other hymenopterans). Peter Kevan, of the University of Guelph, published a paper in Bee World a few years ago on varroa's hitchhiking rides on insects other than Apis spp. Tom Culliney [log in to unmask]