First report on Tropilaelaps mercedesae presence in Turkiye and insight into potential westward invasion corridors
- 1Department of Biology, Hacettepe University, Ankara,Turkiye
Abstract
The honey bee ectoparasitic mite Tropilaelaps mercedesae is an emerging threat to Western beekeeping, as it is expanding its range from native Asia. In this study, the first record of the presence of Tropilaelaps mercedesae in Turkiye, in the Artvin province, in the north-east of the country is documented. Following reports of weakening colonies, eight apiaries were inspected using the rapid brood decapping method. All apiaries were found positive, and infestation was detected in 22 of 24 examined colonies. Mite samples were analysed with morphometry and barcoding and were confirmed as T. mercedesae. In the paper, we discuss the impact of imports and migration practices on the mites occurrence in Turkiye. In addition, we forecast the potential corridors and means of further invasion and address the implications for European and global apiculture.
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BibTeX
@misc{ozkirim2026first,
title = {{First report on Tropilaelaps mercedesae presence in Turkiye and insight into potential westward invasion corridors}},
author = {A. Ozkirim and A. Uzunov and C. Costa and I. Kandemir},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.15.751928},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751928v1},
note = {CC BY-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - First report on Tropilaelaps mercedesae presence in Turkiye and insight into potential westward invasion corridors
AU - A. Ozkirim
AU - A. Uzunov
AU - C. Costa
AU - I. Kandemir
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/15
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.15.751928
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751928v1
AB - The honey bee ectoparasitic mite Tropilaelaps mercedesae is an emerging threat to Western beekeeping, as it is expanding its range from native Asia. In this study, the first record of the presence of Tropilaelaps mercedesae in Turkiye, in the Artvin province, in the north-east of the country is documented. Following reports of weakening colonies, eight apiaries were inspected using the rapid brood decapping method. All apiaries were found positive, and infestation was detected in 22 of 24 examined colonies. Mite samples were analysed with morphometry and barcoding and were confirmed as T. mercedesae. In the paper, we discuss the impact of imports and migration practices on the mites occurrence in Turkiye. In addition, we forecast the potential corridors and means of further invasion and address the implications for European and global apiculture.
ER -