Tracheal mites are microscope mites which reproduce in the trachea (airways) of the bee. The female mites will lay and attach eggs in the trachea. The eggs hatch and then take about 2-3 weeks to mature and mate. Once mated, the young female mites will migrate to the surface of the bee. As the bees brush against one another the mites will move to a young bee, typically about 4 days old and begin the process again.

The mites affect the bee in two fashions. The mites physically obstruct the airway. As the mites reproduce and the infestation increases the trachea of the bees can literally become plugged. In addition, the mites are feeding on the bee by piercing the wall of the trachea. This results in scarification of the tracheal tubes. Both the scarification and physical plugging of the trachea reduces the bee’s ability to acquire sufficient oxygen.

Because the mites are microscopic and most of us don’t own a microscope, a tracheal infestation can be difficult to diagnose before it is too late. One visual aid is a large number of bees walk about the outside of the hive. These are bees that ran short of breath as they attempted to leave the hive on a foraging flight

The best treatment for tracheal mites is a queen bred for tracheal mite resistance. Certainly, tracheal mites are still a problem, but most available queens have been bred to be resistant to mites. If you think you are having problems with tracheal mites, treat the colony and then re-queen.

The traditional method of treating for tracheal mites is the use of menthol crystals which are placed on the top of the hive. As the methol evaporates, it enters the trachea of the bees thus killing the mites. MiteAway II is also an effective treatment, which has the advantage of treating for both tracheal mites and varroa mites with just one product.

An alternative treatment is a mixture of powdered sugar and Crisco. The bees go after the sugar and get covered with the Crisco. This interferes with the mite's ability to detect the young bees. As a result, the mite remains on the older bee and eventually dies with the bee.