Clip description
Bee pathologist Dr Denis Anderson is visiting one of the largest apiaries in the world. Investigating hives with an American keeper, Denis finds that they are all infested by the Varroa mite. The keeper and Denis explain that the mites adapt so well and so quickly, that the chemical used to keep them at bay must change every year, as they become resistant.
Curator’s notes
With the documentary drawing to a close and painting a grim picture about the potential to save the honeybee, this clip is devastating. Close-ups of bees irritated by mites and the sheer number of hives, all Varroa infested, have an overwhelming affect. There seems, at this point, little that can be done to stop the mite from reaching Australia and no surefire means of curing infected bees of the Varroa mite pandemic.