The news release said varroa mites might have been discovered after abandoned hives from Makiki Heights were relocated to the property last week.

Varroa mites were detected on bees in three of the abandoned hives on April 6 by the beekeeper and reported to the HDOA.

Samples of the mites have been sent to a mite specialist at a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) laboratory on the Mainland to confirm identification, the HDOA release said.

Sandra Lee Kunimoto, HDOA chairwoman, said if the samples come back positive, the bee mite poses a major threat to Hawai'i's bee industry and feral bee populations.

The state has been testing for the mites' presence since July 2000, according to Advertiser archives. Varroa mites are indigenous to Asia but have spread around the world. Prior testing in Hawai'i indicated the mite hadn't reached here. The varroa mite is a threat to bees because it bores holes in a bee's body for the blood, causing the bee's wings to fall off before it dies.

"Teams of HDOA staff have been working rapidly to determine the extent of the infestation and to establish containment and control plans," Kunimoto stated in the news release.

The HDOA said it is not known at this time how the mites were introduced to O'ahu, but the Plant Quarantine Branch is preparing a quarantine order preventing the interisland movement of bees and beekeeping equipment. In the meantime, beekeepers are being asked not to move bees interisland.

So far, surveys conducted on hives in the Tantalus, the University of Hawai'i-Manoa and Makiki area have detected varying degrees of infestation of the mite. Surveys on commercial hives on the Big Island, where several of the state's queen bee raising operations are located, have not detected the varroa mite.

DOA Plant Industry staff from three branches, including entomologists, plant quarantine inspectors, plant pest control specialists and pesticides specialists, have mobilized statewide and are working closely with the local bee industry and USDA officials.

Lyle Wong, administrator of HDOA's Plant Industry Division, said beekeepers, commercial and backyard hobbyists, have been called upon to help assess the infestation.

"HDOA officials will be visiting bee hives to conduct surveys and the cooperation of beekeepers is very crucial in possibly stopping the spread of the varroa mite," he said.

Entomologists and pest-control specialists will survey all islands for the mites as soon as possible.