Only one varroa mite discovered in South Island

One “deformed varroa mite” has been discovered in New Zealand's South Island, but nothing more as yet despite an inspection of 100 hives in the Canterbury area over the past few days.

One possibility being investigated was that the mite could be “contamination” on a board brought down from the North Island.

The sticky boards, coated with a miticide, have a life of five or six weeks, but are only used for 24 hours at a time in testing hives.

They are irradiated to kill pests or diseases, then re-used. Because they are coated with an insecticide to kill the mites, there is no restriction on their transport from the North Island to the South Island, because the boards are not seen as a risk for spreading live mites, Mr Bolger told NZPA.