Tropilaelaps mercedesae is an emerging mite parasite of western honey bees. Monitoring its presence in hive is essential for effective control, expecially in Europe where the mite is spreading. A new study, published in the Scientific Reports, evaluated different monitoring methods for detecting the mite in hives. According to the results, the most sensitive method was bottom board sticky traps, followed by worker brood cell uncapping and brood frame bump tests. In contrast, methods that detect mites on the adult bees (such as alcohol wash and powdered sugar shake) were found to be the least sensitive.

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