There’s hardly a beekeeper today who hasn’t faced the Varroa mite. This tiny yet relentless parasite has become the number one threat to modern beekeeping worldwide. It lurks in nearly every hive, slowly draining colonies of their strength. Varroa doesn’t discriminate—it feeds on worker bees and drone brood alike, consuming their vital fat bodies and spreading deadly viruses along the way. No wonder so many beekeepers fear that Varroa could bring an end to beekeeping itself.

Over the decades, countless strategies have been developed to fight this pest. The most common are chemical treatments, often based on synthetic compounds. But these methods are losing their effectiveness. In many regions, Varroa has already developed resistance, making treatments far less reliable. To make matters worse, chemical residues can remain in both honey and wax, raising serious concerns about contamination. And perhaps most alarming of all: these treatments don’t just harm mites—they also weaken the bees themselves.

With all this in mind, it’s natural to ask: are synthetic chemicals really the future of Varroa control? Or could the real solution lie elsewhere—perhaps even within the bees’ own natural behavior?

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Are Chemicals Really the Only Answer?

This is the question that many beekeepers and researchers are starting to ask. Could it be that the solution doesn’t come from stronger chemicals, but from the bees themselves? A growing number of studies suggest that bees, through their natural behaviors, have the ability to fight back against the mite. If that’s true, then perhaps the future of Varroa control lies not in chemical warfare, but in unlocking the bees’ own defenses.

For years, chemical treatments were considered the first line of defense. Strips, vaporizers, and synthetic compounds flooded the market—and at first, they seemed effective. Mite levels dropped, colonies survived, and many believed the problem was under control. But as time passed, Varroa adapted. In many regions, resistance became the norm, and products that once worked now deliver little to no results.

The real cost of this chemical approach is becoming clearer. Residues are showing up in honey and wax. Colonies themselves are being weakened by the very treatments meant to protect them. And long-term, the health of bee populations continues to decline. It’s as if we are forced to use stronger and stronger weapons every year—while the enemy evolves just as quickly.

Meanwhile, reports of mass die-offs are spreading across the globe. Entire colonies vanish overnight, leaving behind silent, empty hives. This isn’t just an isolated problem—it’s a worldwide crisis. Which raises the question: are researchers truly searching in the right direction, or are many studies only misleading beekeepers with temporary fixes? If the chemical path is indeed a dead end, then the urgent question remains: where do we go from here?

A Different Angle: Observing the Bees Themselves

At Laval University in Québec, Canada, a research team decided to shift perspective. Instead of searching for new chemical formulas, they turned their attention to the bees themselves. Their goal was to determine whether instinctive behaviors could help colonies keep Varroa under control without human intervention.

The central question was simple yet powerful: which behavioral traits actually improve colony survival? Could bees detect and remove infected or dead brood? Might they be able to disrupt the mite’s reproductive cycle? Or perhaps repeatedly uncap suspicious cells to disturb the parasites hidden inside?

This study wasn’t about developing the next chemical treatment, nor about analyzing every factor behind colony losses. It was about exploring whether bees can defend their own community—and if so, whether those traits could be identified and encouraged. The long-term hope is that selective breeding could strengthen colonies naturally, creating populations more resilient against Varroa.

Whether this direction truly leads to solutions is still up for debate. Personally, I believe researchers may be looking in the wrong place. But before drawing conclusions, let’s take a closer look at what this study actually uncovered.

The Bee Behaviors That Could Fight Varroa

The Laval research team focused on several specific behaviors that might help bees hold Varroa mites in check. Each represents a different natural line of defense—and together, they could play a critical role in colony survival.

• Hygienic behavior: This is when bees detect diseased or dead brood and remove it from the cell. Researchers measure this with two main methods: the freeze-killed brood test, where liquid nitrogen is used to kill a small patch of brood and scientists observe how quickly bees clean it out; and the pin test, where cells are punctured with a needle to see how fast the workers respond. This trait isn’t only useful against Varroa—it also protects colonies from bacterial and fungal diseases such as American foulbrood and chalkbrood.
• Varroa-sensitive hygiene: (VSH). Unlike general hygienic behavior, VSH is much more targeted. Here, bees actually recognize cells where mites are reproducing. They uncap these cells and remove the infected pupae, directly breaking the reproductive cycle of the parasite.
• Recapping: Sometimes bees repeatedly uncap and then reseal suspicious brood cells. Researchers call this behavior “recapping.” While its effect isn’t always consistent, the process likely disrupts the mite’s ability to reproduce successfully.
• Mite reproductive failure: In some cases, mites inside brood cells fail to reproduce at all. This can happen because of the bees’ interference—or possibly because of signals from the developing pupa itself. Either way, more reproductive failures mean slower Varroa population growth in the hive.

Each of these traits is fascinating on its own, but the big question remains: how do they work together, and which one truly stands out as the most powerful natural weapon against Varroa?

Putting Bee Behavior to the Test

The study involved 56 colonies in Québec—but these weren’t chosen randomly. They were the product of several years of selective breeding, with hygienic behavior already considered in the process. This gave researchers a better chance of observing colonies that could realistically display natural defense mechanisms against Varroa.

The colonies were placed in different locations, all under real-world conditions near agricultural landscapes. This way, the findings wouldn’t be limited to one type of environment but would instead show how bees behave across multiple settings.

Researchers then ran a series of tests. The freeze-killed brood and pin tests were used to measure hygienic behavior—that is, how quickly the bees cleared away dead brood. At the same time, they monitored signs of Varroa-sensitive hygiene, looking for cases where bees removed mite-infested pupae. They also tracked the reopening and resealing of capped cells and carefully studied how often mites successfully reproduced inside brood.

The goal wasn’t just to watch the bees—it was to understand whether these behaviors truly translated into lower mite levels within the colony. And in many ways, the results turned out to be surprising.

What the Research Revealed

The trials made one thing clear: not all bee behaviors are equally effective against Varroa. Two stood out above the rest—the removal of infected brood and mite reproductive failure. Colonies where bees quickly removed diseased or mite-infested pupae showed much slower mite population growth. The same was true in colonies where a high percentage of mites failed to reproduce inside brood cells.

By contrast, cell recapping—where bees uncap and then reseal suspicious brood cells—proved weak when taken alone. In fact, colonies that showed too much recapping sometimes had higher infestation levels, suggesting that this behavior may signal infection rather than stop it. Classic hygienic behavior, as measured with freeze-killed brood or pin tests, was helpful for overall colony health, but by itself it was not enough to hold back Varroa.

The main takeaway was simple but powerful: there is no silver bullet. No single trait can solve the Varroa problem. Real strength comes from a combination of behaviors. Colonies that show both rapid brood removal and high levels of mite reproductive failure, combined with general hygienic instincts, can slow down infestation growth. This doesn’t necessarily mean a total cure—but it can reduce chemical dependence, make treatments more effective, and extend their usefulness.

For beekeepers and breeders, the lesson is clear: it’s not enough to select for one trait. True resistance emerges only when multiple natural defense mechanisms exist in the same colony. If bees can both disrupt mite reproduction and remove infected pupae quickly, Varroa levels can remain manageable over the long term. The future of sustainable beekeeping, then, depends on conscious selection—choosing and multiplying colonies that carry more than one line of natural defense.

 

Finding Balance: Bees and Beekeepers Together

In the end, the future of beekeeping lies in two places: the bees’ natural strength and the choices we make as beekeepers. Research makes it clear that bees have the ability to slow Varroa infestations through their own behaviors. The two most important traits are the rapid removal of infected brood and the repeated failure of mites to reproduce. These are absolutely worth recognizing and supporting through selective breeding.

But practical experience tells us something else as well: bees cannot handle the mite entirely on their own. In our own family apiary, we’ve relied on Mavrik treatments since the mid-1980s as a main line of defense. The dosage is straightforward and precise: 2–2.5 milliliters of Mavrik per liter of water, using a two-liter bottle with a 1.5-millimeter hole in the cap. With 2 liters of solution, we can treat 20–25 colonies—and to this day, it works just as reliably as when we first began using it.

That’s why I personally don’t believe Varroa develops true resistance, as long as treatments are carried out seriously and consistently. Much of the fear around “resistance” only benefits the pharmaceutical industry, encouraging beekeepers to buy half a dozen different active ingredients out of fear that their bees won’t survive otherwise. In reality, the solution lies somewhere in the middle.

Science shows us the importance of bees’ natural defense mechanisms. They are worth observing, encouraging, and selecting for, because they do make colonies stronger. At the same time, tried-and-true treatments should not be ignored. The combination of these two approaches—supporting the bees’ instincts while applying responsible treatments—offers the most stable path forward.

So the final message is simple: bees can do a lot for themselves, but they need us to guide them wisely. By combining scientific insights with real-world experience, we can build healthier, stronger, and more sustainable beekeeping for the long term.