PMSP for Honey Bees in Mid-Atlantic States

Priorities

Category Rank Pest Type Pest Crop Stage Priority
Extension/Outreach 1 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Educate public on honey bee best management practices & address misconceptions
Extension/Outreach 2 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Share BMPs with beekeepers
Extension/Outreach 3 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Work to improve viability of beekeeping industry; encourage & educate new or potential beekeepers
Extension/Outreach 4 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Improve information transfer techniques (e.g., eXtension)
Extension/Outreach 5 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Educate apiarists on changing bee forage
Extension/Outreach 6 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Advise public and local agencies on AHB facts, along with appropriate preparations & action plans
Extension/Outreach 7 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Promote local & small-scale queen & bee production, as well as local pollination services
Extension/Outreach 8 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Provide information on alternative pollinators
Extension/Outreach 9 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Inform crop growers of beneficial farming practices that protect pollinators (e.g., timing & planting nectar-bearing plants)
Extension/Outreach 10 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Develop & maintain interstate collaborations, such as MAAREC, because working groups may find it easier to get new control methods in the pipeline or registered for beekeeper use
Regulatory 1 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Explore the possibility of reclassifying honey bees as livestock in order to protect beekeepers from economic losses during natural disasters, but only where doing so will not trigger ordinances prohibiting livestock
Regulatory 2 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Reduce liability of beekeepers for hive activities
Regulatory 3 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Produce lists of certified queen breeders
Regulatory 4 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Develop & implement regionally valid hive inspections
Regulatory 5 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Train beekeepers in pesticide safety & encourage them to get private applicator licenses
Research 1 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Determine ways to improve overall colony health & productivity; identify factors leading to decline in honey bee health, such as nutrition, stress, & pests; focus on new or current major issues (e.g., mites, CCD, & genetic disorders)
Research 2 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Design best management practices (BMPs) related to point above
Research 3 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Study mites & develop new control methods
Research 4 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Study selective breeding, stock improvement, & means to increase genetic diversity
Research 5 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Reduce dependence on chemical control methods
Research 6 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Create & disseminate surveys of honey bee diseases & pests to apiarists throughout the mid-Atlantic region
Research 7 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Search for & study beneficial or symbiotic organisms within honey bees
Research 8 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Develop better diagnostics for AHB
Research 9 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Improve understanding of changing bee forage
Research 10 All 6- to 12-Inch Shoot Examine the nutritional quality of GMOs & the impact on honey bees; also, whether modified genetic material is being transferred to bees & possible effects.