Background:

Honey bees are threatened by acaride Varroa destructor, which among other factors, causes what is known today in the world as Colony Collapse Disorder. The aim of this review is to publish updated information of Varroasis in Apis mellifera, as well as to study some defense mechanisms of bees during their co-evolution with the parasite.

Methods:

The databases of Sciencedirect, Google-scholar, Scopus, and NCBI were reviewed under the following key words: Varroa destructor, biological cycle, bees, Apis, Africanized bees, apiculture, and Apis mellifera. Special emphasis was paid to papers published within the last five years.

Results:

The features of the acaride and its biological cycle, its effects on bee colonies, and the factors that favor the presence of the parasite were described. Moreover, mechanisms like hygienic behavior, grooming, and suppression of acaride reproduction. The impact of Varroasis worldwide was updated.

Conclusions:

Certain bee populations manage to live with acaride varroa, because their defense mechanisms allow for infestation rates at permissible ranges. The current trend is to include these mechanisms in breeding programs.