Bee health
Honey bees and wild bees play an important role in ecosystems and, together with other insects, are indispensable for the pollination of flowering plants and thus for biodiversity and food security. Only a healthy, intact bee colony can fulfil these tasks. Our goal is to sustainably safeguard the honey bee population in Austria. Unlike other farm animals, honey bees are free-flying and choose their food independently from the surrounding nature. Thus, honey bees and their health are in constant interaction with the environment and its use by humans (e.g. the type of land management, the use of pesticides and biocides, treated seeds and genetically modified organisms). Climate change and the globalised economy pose further challenges for bees and beekeeping, as they change habitats and living conditions and open the door to a global spread of pathogens, parasites and pests that are dangerous to bees. This also applies to bumble bees and solitary bees, which, together with honey bees and other flower-visiting insects, make an indispensable contribution to the biodiversity of the animal and plant world in the ecosystem through their pollination activities and contribute to food security.
When it comes to bee and colony losses, scientists agree that they are influenced by many factors. Among other things, the habitat of the bees, the interaction with agriculture, beekeeping and apiculture, the occurrence of pathogens and proper disease control play a role.
Our bee science and bee protection department is happy to answer any questions you may have on the topics of bee health and bee protection as well as other bee-related concerns.
Bee diseases
Various bee diseases and pests can become a problem for bee colonies and cause major damage to them. Early detection and correct diagnosis of diseases in bees are therefore crucial. In our pathogen database you will find extensive information on the various pathogens and pests of honey bees. Here you can filter on the animal species "bee".
An overview of the diagnosis of various bee diseases and pests can be found on our Bee Disease Diagnosis Guide page.
The notification obligation in accordance with EU Animal Health Law (AHL) 2016/429 and Delegated Regulation 2018/1629 applies to
- American foulbrood
- Infestation with Varroa spp. (varroosis)
- Infestation with Aethina tumida (small hive beetle)
- Infestation with Tropilaelaps spp.
On 1 July 2024, the Animal Health Act 2024 Federal Law Gazette No. 53/2024 came into force with the Veterinary Law Amendment 2024. This replaces the now withdrawn Bee Diseases Act. The "Special provisions for bees" can be found in the fourth section of the Animal Health Act, under §49 to §56. Some provisions on bee health, which were previously regulated in the Bee Diseases Act, were adopted with the same wording. However, there are also changes compared to the Bee Diseases Act, such as the explicit mention of specialised veterinarians as "specially trained" in §50. The reporting obligation for the varroa mite is restricted to "epidemic occurrence" in Section 3(2)(11) and further reporting obligations in the event of "epidemic occurrence" are no longer mentioned. The term "bee expert" does not exist in the law; this role is to be assigned to "specially trained or otherwise professionally qualified persons" according to §5 (1). Some aspects, such as the definition of the epidemic occurrence of the Varroa mite, will have to be clarified in a regulation.
American foulbrood
American foulbrood is a serious disease of the honey bee that leads to the death of the bee brood. It is caused by the bacterium Paenibacillus larvae and transmitted by the highly contagious permanent forms (spores) of the bacterium. Due to the high infectivity and severity of the disease, notification is mandatory throughout the EU. In the event of an outbreak of American foulbrood, all apiaries within a radius of 3 km are inspected and control measures are to be carried out in apiaries with diseased colonies in order to eliminate the pathogen.
American foulbrood is responsible for a large proportion of the officially recorded cases of animal disease in Austria. To prevent an outbreak of the disease, hygiene measures as well as examinations for the early detection of a possible spore contamination in materials from the bee colony are particularly important (e.g. feed crown sample). Further information can be found in our pathogen database . There is no risk for humans - neither when processing the colonies nor when consuming bee products such as honey.
Varroa mite
The Varroa mite(Varroa destructor) originally comes from Asia and parasitises bees and bee brood. Various bee viruses are transmitted by the Varroa mite. Both the parasitisation and the bee viruses damage bees and their brood stages. The Varroa mite has been present in Austria since around 1980 and can now be found in every bee colony. The Varroa mite is responsible for a large proportion of colony collapses in autumn and winter.
Since 1 January 2014, varroa control products have required authorisation as veterinary medicinal products (TAM) in Austria. Bees may only be treated with substances authorised for this species (Regulation (EU) No. 37/2010) (§ 4 (5) TAKG).
Only authorised veterinary medicinal products may be used for control. The veterinary medicinal products authorised in Austria for varroa control can be found in the Register of Speciality Medicinal Products of the Federal Office for Safety in Health Care (BASG), where instructions for use and technical information are available for each preparation.
In our pathogen database you will find extensive information on varroa mites, varroosis, varroa control and illustrative videos on the biology and control of varroa mites.
Further information
bienengesundheit.at was launched in 2017 to provide assistance in the effective control of the varroa mite, modelled on the warning services in the field of plant cultivation. In addition to the Varroa weather service, you will also find a wealth of other information on the topic of varroa mites here. Since 2024, the site has also hosted the Austria-wide reporting platform for the Asian hornet(Vespa velutina), which can be accessed directly via velutinamelden.at
Suspected bee poisoning
The competent authorities in cases of suspected bee poisoning are the district administrative authorities (Bezirkshauptmannschaft, Magistrat). In case of suspected crime, a report must be filed with the police. If you are unsure, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Possible causes of poisoning damage
- Plant protection products: poisoning by plant protection measures in agriculture and forestry or in gardens; largest share of poisoning damages
- Crimes: bees are poisoned wantonly
- Industrial waste gases (e.g. emissions containing arsenic, lead or fluorine)
- Poisoning by toxic nectar or pollen
Signs of bee poisoning
- Mass mortality on the ground in front of the hive entrance, on flight boards and in hives
- Conspicuous behavior of bees at the flight hole
- Strong and sudden decrease in bee flight and colony strength. If the foraging bees in the field are hit by agents of high acute toxicity, many of them die already during the flight.
- Brood changes: Plant protection products from the group of growth regulators that damage brood development leave characteristic damage patterns (white-gray crescents on the inner edge of the compound eyes) on dead pupae and young bees that do not appear until 10 to 25 days after spraying.
News: Small hive beetle Tropilaelaps mite
For Europe, the occurrence of Tropilaelaps mercedesae was detected in the eastern Black Sea region from 2021(Brandorf et al. 2024, Journal of Apicultural Research). Tropilaelaps mites do not yet occur in Austria or the EU.
News: Asian hornet (Vespa velutina)
A specimen of the Asian hornet(Vespa velutina) was found in Austria for the first time: An adult female was discovered in the city of Salzburg on 8 April 2024. This discovery is not surprising, as the Asian hornet occurs in five of the seven neighbouring countries, in some cases very close to the Austrian border (as of August 2024). Further introductions are therefore to be expected.
Spread to Europe
In 2014, the small hive beetle was discovered in southern Italy and has established itself in Calabria. This is the first and currently only established population of the beetle in Europe. From 2015, the veterinary authorities in Calabria and Sicily set up monitoring colonies (so-called sentinel colonies) to obtain a picture of the infestation situation. Repeated infestations were detected in Sicily: following the successful eradication of cases in 2014 and 2019, the small hive beetle was discovered in a surveillance colony in Messina on 5 October 2024. Monitoring activities in the rest of Italy have not yet revealed any findings of the small hive beetle.
Spread to areas under EU jurisdiction
In France's overseas department of La Réunion, an island in the Pacific, the small hive beetle was detected on 5 July 2022 and has since spread on the island. France - and therefore also the EU - is politically and organisationally involved in this outbreak.
Legal regulations for the import of bees
As there is also a risk of the introduction of the beetle in Austria, it is essential to comply with the legal regulations on the import of bees. According to Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/110, Calabria and La Réunion are subject to restrictions. The provisions on movement within the Union are described in Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/688 of 17 December 2019. The movement of bee colonies from a restricted region and a 100 km buffer zone surrounding this region is not permitted.
For the transport of queens in cages (single queen with a maximum of 20 nurse bees per cage), smaller minimum distances to infestation areas of the small hive beetle are possible (at least 50 km distance to a confirmed case). For the movement of bumblebee colonies, breeding must take place in a facility that is shielded from the outside world.
The basic prerequisites for any movement are valid veterinary certificates from the country of origin, notification of the movement via TRACES and notification to the competent veterinary authority of the recipient country. This means that both the authorities of the country of origin and the host country are informed about the movement of bees or bumblebees and can carry out targeted checks.
Information on the current epidemiological situation in Italy
- in Italian language: https://www.izsvenezie.it/aethina-tumida-in-italia/
- in English language: https://www.izsvenezie.com/aethina-tumida-in-italy/
Sample submission
Our offer for examinations on bee health and bee products
We are at your disposal as competent contact persons for the examination of bee diseases. You can send us samples of your bee colony if you suspect a disease. We will carry out the requested examinations for you. The current price list applies to examinations for which a fee is charged. You can find it under Downloads at the bottom of the page.
We kindly ask you to enclose a written order form with the samples. The order form can be found in the downloads. For details on sample types, sample size, packaging and shipping, please refer to the enclosed leaflet "Private Probeneinsendung".
Samples can be sent to the contact address below. Alternatively, submission is also possible from Monday to Thursday from 9-12 and 13-15 and Friday from 9-12.
Last updated: 15.10.2024
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