I also thought this seemed brutal, but I did some quick research and it seems the Varroa mite does not (or did not) inhabit Australia at all before this episode. It is the only continent in the world that has been free from this parasite.
The mite is not native to Austrlia, so if found anywhere it means it came into the country by some human transport method.
It would therefore constitute a kind of invasive species.
With that in mind you can kind of understand that if it is found anywhere, you want to take care of it very swiftly with no opportunity for survivors.
There's probably plenty of bees in Australia, so if a 10km radius is all that is nuked, it might be worth it to make sure it does not spread to the rest of the continent.
I don't know all the details, but I assume this is the thinking here.
qwop -1 points 1 year ago
I also thought this seemed brutal, but I did some quick research and it seems the Varroa mite does not (or did not) inhabit Australia at all before this episode. It is the only continent in the world that has been free from this parasite.
The mite is not native to Austrlia, so if found anywhere it means it came into the country by some human transport method.
It would therefore constitute a kind of invasive species.
With that in mind you can kind of understand that if it is found anywhere, you want to take care of it very swiftly with no opportunity for survivors.
There's probably plenty of bees in Australia, so if a 10km radius is all that is nuked, it might be worth it to make sure it does not spread to the rest of the continent.
I don't know all the details, but I assume this is the thinking here.