BioControls+-+Mitosporic+Fungi+(GAZ)

**Mycoacaricides**

Perhaps one of the more interesting and recent methods of //Varroa // control is through the use of mitosporic fungi as a mycoacaricide. There are over 25,000 species of mitosporic fungi. They are responsible for a myriad of things including penicillin and athlete’s foot, but are also exhibiting a high potential as a bio-control for //Varroa //. Few tests of their efficiencies have been performed so far, but results for some species of mitosporic fungi such as //Metarhizium // (a naturally occurring soil fungus) are showing great potential (Garcia-Fernandez et al. 2008, 670).

This specific fungus is known to infect up to 200 insect species. It causes fatal mycosis (an inflammatory infection) in //Varroa // but is not harmful to honey bee adults or pupae. As this method of control is very recent and is still being developed it faces potential issues if it is to be a successful control. One such issue is the finding of an efficient application method, as it appears that spraying the hive with fungi spores is not as efficient as dusting the hive with spores (Gerritsen and Cornelissen 2006, 131). Another such issue is the effect hive temperature can have on the sustained growth of the fungi. The brood areas are primarily where the fungi would need to grow to be an effective control as this is the preferential //Varroa // reproducing area. Temperatures within these areas are maintained around 35 °C (Garcia-Fernandez et al. 2008, 670)**,** (663 Davidson et al. 2002, 816). Researchers have discovered that //Metarhizium // thrive on the periphery of the brood nest, but could prove less efficient in the very heart of the brood nest or if temperatures were at a maximum within the hive. More studies need to be performed to see if there are any un-wanted side effects on bee products associated with the use of mycoacaricides.

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