Comparative tests of fluvalinate and flumethrin to control<i>Varroa jacobsoni</i>Oudemans

Abstract

SUMMARYThe effectiveness of two acaricides, fluvalinate and flumethrin, against Varroa jacobsoni was tested in field colonies of honey bees containing sealed brood.The experiment was carried out with three groups of five hives containing Apis mellifera mellifera. One group was treated with a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) strip containing 0.8 g of fluvalinate. A second group received two polyethylene strips each containing 3.6 mg of flumethrin. The third group served as a control and received no treatment. Treatment strips remained in hives for 28 days.Infestation rates in adult bees and brood were measured before and after the treatment, and the effectiveness was calculated as a percentage of the initial infestation. The effectiveness was higher than 95% for both acaricides, whereas the infestation rate increased in the control group.