The state Department of Agriculture is stepping up efforts to eradicate wild bees in an area near Hilo Bay in an attempt to stop the spread of bee-killing varroa mites on the Big Island.

Agriculture department officials said it found one mite on a bee in Hilo on Oct. 30, the first mite detected since Sept. 11 and the 45th since the first mites were discovered on the island in late August.

"The detection of one varroa mite very close to the initial positive site gives us hope that the mites have not traveled far," Neil Reimer, agency plant pest control manager, said in a statement. "We have intensified our efforts to take out all bees in that particular area."

The sole mite was found among 50 bees caught in a baited trap within a few hundred yards from an area where the mites were initially detected.

Since the first case was discovered on the Big Island, pest control teams have collected 261,500 bees and found 45 mites among the sample.

Agents have checked about 115 feral hives and destroyed about 100 in the Hilo area. Bees collected in about 200 swarm traps and 60 bait stations were also destroyed.

Varroa mites are among the most destructive pests of honey bees, and could threaten pollination of flowers and food crops statewide if the mites spread. To date, mites have not been detected in any hives managed by beekeepers on the Big Island.

The parasites were first detected in O'ahu hives last April. They spread through bee contact, weakening adult bees and causing larvae to be deformed.

Spread of the mites could cost farmers $42 million to $62 million a year if they wipe out the state's bee population, according to a preliminary Department of Agriculture estimate.

On the Big Island, four producers of queen bees generate annual sales of more than $4 million, according to the state.

Hilo residents are asked to report wild beehives and bee swarms to the state's toll-free Pest Hotline at 643-PEST (7378).

The state also is asking beekeepers and the public not to transport bees or beekeeping equipment in or out of a 15-mile radius around Hilo Bay.

Information and previous news releases on varroa mites are available on the department's Web page at http://hawaii.gov/hdoa/pi/ppc/varroa-bee-mite-page.