The small hive beetle (Aethina tumida) is a beekeeping pest. It is native to sub-Saharan Africa, but has spread to many other locations, including North America, Australia, and the Philippines.
The small hive beetle can be a destructive pest of honey bee colonies, causing damage to comb, stored honey, and pollen. If a beetle infestation is sufficiently heavy, they may cause bees to abandon their hive. Its presence can also be a marker in the diagnosis of colony collapse disorder for honey bees. The beetles can also be a pest of stored combs, and honey (in the comb) awaiting extraction. Beetle larvae may tunnel through combs of honey, feeding and defecating, causing discoloration and fermentation of the honey.
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The small hive beetle was first discovered in the United States in 1996 and has now spread to many U.S. states including, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. In the summer of 2015, the discovery of a number of adult beetles as well as one infestation in all stages of brood in British Columbia's Fraser Valley triggered a temporary quarantine.
In Mexico, the small hive beetle has become established in at least eight states. Infestation levels are especially high in tropical areas such as the Yucatán.
The small hive beetle was first detected in Belize in 2016 in the Corozal District.
The small hive beetle has also spread to Australia, being first identified at Richmond, New South Wales, in 2002. Subsequently, it has affected many areas of Queensland and New South Wales. It seems plausible to assume that the import of package bees, honeybee or bumblebee colonies, queens, hive equipment or even soil constituted the potential invasion pathway of the small hive beetle; however, at the current state of evidence it is still unclear how small hive beetles actually reached Australia.
The small hive beetle has now reached the southern Philippines in southern Mindanao, and there is great concern that it will spread through the country if hives and bees are moved from the southern Mindanao area where the beetle has already been identified.
Small hive beetle was first detected in Calabria southern Italy in September 2014. It is currently confined to the provinces of Reggio Calabria and part of Vibo Valentia, where it has now become naturalized. In 2014 and 2019, outbreaks of infestation occurred in eastern Sicily.
Aethina tumida was previously known only from the sub-Saharan regions of Africa where it has been considered a minor pest of bees. The life cycle information is known primarily from studies in South Africa.
The small hive beetle is a member of the family of scavengers or sap beetles. The adult beetle is dark brown to black and about 5–6 mm in length. The adults may live up to 6 months and can be observed almost anywhere in a hive, although they are most often found on the rear portion of the bottom board of a hive. Female beetles lay irregular masses of eggs in cracks or crevices in a hive. The eggs hatch in 2–3 days into white-colored larvae that will grow to 10–11 mm in length. Larvae feed on pollen and honey, damaging combs, and require about 10–16 days to mature. Larvae that are ready to pupate leave the hive and burrow into soil near the hive. The pupation period may last approximately 3–4 weeks. Newly emerged adults seek out hives, and females generally mate and begin egg laying about a week after emergence. Adult female small hive beetles generally are longer at 5.7 mm than males which are 5.5 mm long, but both are nearly identical in width at about 3.2 mm, although they can vary greatly in size, possibly depending on diet, climate, and other environmental factors.
