# Is This K-Wing?



## John Gesner (Dec 17, 2005)

I hope these pictures show what I was looking at today.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y256/gesnerj59/Beekeeping/KWing3.jpg 

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y256/gesnerj59/Beekeeping/KWing2.jpg 

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y256/gesnerj59/Beekeeping/KWing.jpg

[ April 02, 2006, 05:00 PM: Message edited by: John Gesner ]


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## David Stewart (Jan 22, 2005)

If that's not K wing I've mis-diagnosed mine....Don't take my word for it as someone with more experience will hopefully jump in soon enough and either say yes or no.

Luck,
David


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## John Gesner (Dec 17, 2005)

Thanks, David.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Look slike "K" wing. An occasional one I don't worry about. A lot means you probably have a tracheal mite problem.


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## John Gesner (Dec 17, 2005)

Thanks, Michael. I heard there was a lab that I could send some bees off to. I think my county inspector has the address. There were enough bees that I'm concerned. This hive was very gentle. Perhaps I was confusing gentle with lethargic.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

http://www.ba.ars.usda.gov/psi/brl/directs.htm


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## mobees (Jul 26, 2004)

I have seen some k-wing here and there, inside of a hive, or crawling on the ground infront of hive. But never as a forager, I have watched but never seem to see any coming and going.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

I don't think they can fly with "K" wing.


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

You can use menthol (Mite-A-Thol) to control Tracheal mites [Ref 12, p616].

Apply when temp is expected to reach at least 60 F [Package]) and allow for a 28-day minimum treatment [Mann Lake 2003 Catalog, p34] and 30-day withdrawal [Package] before adding honey supers. 

Grease patties (plain) can be use anytime for T-mites. (More of a preventive than treatment)


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## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

Fogging with FGMO is an option as well.

See FGMO section for procedures.

[ April 25, 2006, 03:32 PM: Message edited by: Sundance ]


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

After treating all summer, menthol-treated hives had 1 to 4% Tracheal mite levels and fogger treated hives had levels of 17 to 32% [ABJ, 7/04, p519].

When over 30% of bees in colony are parasitized by tracheal mites, honey production may be reduced and likelihood of winter survival decreases as infestation increases [Ref 12, p1113, Ref 16, p81].

[ April 25, 2006, 03:42 PM: Message edited by: Dave W ]


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

CULTURAL CONTROL 

Because T-mite infestations tend to be relatively slow growing and chronic, these mites are more amenable to cultural controls than are Varroa mites [Ref 16, p105]. Cultural controls reduce T-mites (when used w/ menthol or grease patties) [Ref 15, p139].
a) Eliminate Older Bees - Reduce numbers of foragers and drones in fall. Especially important is eliminating older bees (especially drones) in fall as they are most infested (move hive and destroy field force w/ soapy water [Ref 15, p139]), and encouraging brood production to get young bees emerged prior to first frost [BC 10/02, p20]. 
b) Making Splits - Typically, 1 or 2 nucs are taken (made up) from strongest colony. Nucs are then moved to a new location and managed separately from parent colony. By using brood frames w/ adhering nurse bees, most heavily parasitized bees are avoided and new unit will probably include a substantial number of young non-infested bees. If splits are made during or after spring nectar flow, it further limits the inclusion of infested foragers as infestation frequently drops precipitously after a honey flow. Moving nuc to new location eliminates drifting from parent colony [Ref 16, p106].
c) Requeening - Maintaining strong colonies w/ a good queen in dry quarters [Ref 2, p196]. Using vigorous young queens is probably the single most effective cultural control available. Prolific egg laying by young queens tends to reduce the average mite load by increasing number of bees in relation to number of young migratory female mites [Ref 16, p106]. Impact of T-mites can be minimized by maintaining populous colonies and using menthol
[http://www.barc.usda.gov/psi/brl/mite-aw.htm].
d) Reduce Stress - Reducing frequency of colony disturbance, maintaining foulbrood control, providing adequate winter stores, and any other practice that promotes vigor will probably help reduce the impact of T-mite [Ref 16, p107]. Keep bees healthy w/ plenty of pollen and honey stores, provide supplements if needed [Ref 15, p139].
e) Reduce Mite Dispersal - Drifting by workers and drones has been long recognized as an important source of infestation. Stagger colonies in apiary. Palletized colonies are likely to show high rates of drift [Ref 16, p108]. Small colonies w/ high mite populations should be killed in fall [Ref 16, p110].


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## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

Personally I use thymol with the FGMO espressly for TM. Not for varroa especially.


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## Robert Brenchley (Apr 23, 2000)

If you have a serious TM infestation, I'd suggest requeening. It's not a problem in the UK, as the vast majority of our bees are resistant, and I wouldn't have thought it needed to be a problem over there either.


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

Robert Brenchley . . .

Here are a couple of statements from my notes that "kinda" describes our "problem over here".

A study by De Guzman (2005), part of a growing body of evidence, suggests the solution to U.S. "tracheal mite problem" lies within the honey bee itself, rather than in products applied to hive for mite control.
- - Bee Culture, 4/06, p16 

Many bees are resistant to tracheal mites, and do not need treatment. This does not mean that they do not become infested, or that every queen you get from a certain beekeeper will have resistance, but some stocks of bees have lower levels of infestation. Which stocks are resistant can vary from year to year
- - Greg Hunt, Bee Specialist, Purdue University, http://www.entm.purdue.edu/Entomology/ext/targets/e-series//EseriesPDF/e-201.pdf - p6, Accessed 4/18/06.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

If everyone would quit treating for TM we wouldn't have a problem with them anymore.


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## Liz Corbett (Apr 9, 2005)

Formic acid kills both varroa AND tracheal mites which means one treatment does both jobs. You don't have to invest big bucks in two different types of treatment. Check out the website at www.miteaway.com. Mite-Away II formic acid pads were originally developed to control tracheal mites and then it was found that they controlled varroa as well.

Tracheal mites can be insidious. If you have hives that die, varroa mites aren't evident and other causes of death are not evident, find a lab that does tracheal mite testing and get it done.

Liz Corbett
Business Manager
NOD Apiary Products USA Inc.


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