Stainless steel screen bottom boards are strictly required during Oxalic Acid treatments to function as a mechanical segregation tool that guarantees accurate mortality data. They physically separate the bee colony from the fallen mites and sticky monitoring cards, ensuring that bees cannot clean away the evidence of the treatment's success or get stuck on the diagnostic traps below.
Core Takeaway Screen bottom boards are vital for validating treatment efficacy and preventing re-infestation. By allowing mites to fall through a mesh barrier, they prevent bees from removing mite carcasses (which skews data) and eliminate the platform mites need to crawl back into the colony.
Ensuring Data Accuracy
The primary reason for using a screen bottom board during chemical treatment is to create a controlled environment for data collection. Without this barrier, measuring the effectiveness of your Oxalic Acid application becomes nearly impossible.
Preventing Hygienic Removal
Honey bees are naturally hygienic and will actively remove debris and dead pests from the hive floor. If mites killed by Oxalic Acid fall onto a solid bottom board, bees will likely carry them out before you can count them. The screen mesh allows mites to pass through to a monitoring board below, placing them safely out of the bees' reach to ensure an accurate "kill count."
Isolating the Sticky Trap
To quantify the fallen mites, beekeepers typically place a sticky diagnostic board beneath the hive. These boards use adhesive to trap mites, which could be fatal to bees if they came into direct contact with it. The stainless steel screen acts as a safety guard, allowing mites to fall through while keeping the bees physically separated from the sticky surface.
Breaking the Re-infestation Cycle
Beyond monitoring, the screen bottom board plays a crucial mechanical role in the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy. It ensures that once a mite is dislodged by the treatment, it stays out of the colony.
Eliminating the Return Platform
On traditional solid wooden bottom boards, approximately 40% to 50% of fallen mites can survive the fall and crawl back up to re-parasitize the bees. Solid boards provide a landing platform that facilitates this secondary infestation. Screen bottom boards remove this platform, forcing fallen mites to drop out of the hive entirely or onto a trap where they cannot return.
Verifying Treatment Efficacy
Sticky diagnostic boards placed under the screen are used to collect mites specifically within 72 hours of treatment. This timeframe is critical for evaluating the real-time kill rate of the Oxalic Acid. By counting the carcasses trapped beneath the screen, technicians can quantitatively determine if the treatment concentration and application method were effective.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
While screen bottom boards are highly effective tools, they are not a "set and forget" solution. Understanding their limitations is essential for successful treatment.
The Risk of Debris Clogging
Over time, wax cappings and pollen can clog the mesh openings of the screen. If the screen is blocked, mites cannot fall through to the sticky board, leading to falsely low mite counts and potentially allowing mites to survive inside the hive. Regular cleaning of the stainless steel mesh is required to maintain the physical barrier's function.
Misinterpreting "The Drop"
A high number of mites on the bottom board confirms the treatment is killing pests, but a low number does not always mean the hive is mite-free. It could indicate a failed treatment application or a low initial mite load. Always correlate the drop count with previous sampling data to get a true picture of colony health.
Making the Right Choice for Your Goal
To maximize the effectiveness of your Varroa management strategy, apply the screen bottom board based on your specific objective.
- If your primary focus is verifying treatment success: Insert a sticky board beneath the screen immediately before applying Oxalic Acid and count the mites 72 hours later to calculate the kill rate.
- If your primary focus is passive mechanical control: Leave the screen bottom open (without a sticky board) during non-treatment periods to allow dislodged mites to fall to the ground and perish naturally.
Effective Varroa management relies not just on the chemical used, but on the precise mechanical setup that proves the chemical did its job.
Summary Table:
| Feature | Impact on Varroa Treatment |
|---|---|
| Mechanical Segregation | Prevents bees from removing dead mites; ensures accurate data collection. |
| Safety Barrier | Isolates bees from sticky monitoring traps to prevent accidental harm. |
| Re-infestation Prevention | Eliminates the floor platform, preventing mites from crawling back into the hive. |
| Efficacy Verification | Facilitates a precise 72-hour "kill count" to assess treatment success. |
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References
- Duaa Manaf Ahmad, Muzahim Ayoub Elsaiegh. The Use of Different Concentrations of Oxalic Acid to Decrease the Infestation of Varroa Destructor during Autumn Season as One of Integrated Management Methods. DOI: 10.56286/ntujavs.v2i2.294
This article is also based on technical information from HonestBee Knowledge Base .
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