Altitude-Induced Hypoxia Suppresses Varroa Mite Reproduction in Honeybeesm

Beekeepers on the Tibetan Plateau reported rarely seeing the ectoparasitic varroa mite in their honeybee colonies, unlike all other areas of China. We conducted a series of translocation experiments to investigate this phenomenon. We found that hypoxic conditions above 3,500m on the Tibetan Plateau reduces the mite fecundity and arrests offspring development. This reduced mite fertility and arrested offspring development was also found in honeybee colonies maintained at low altitude but under hypoxic conditions like that found at 3,500m. The dataset contains all the raw data from the many experiments involved in this study.