1.   The Government wants to control the spread of the varroa mite, a parasite which can weaken and eventually kill bees.

2.   She begins with varroa mites, which she says have taken a huge toll on European and African honeybees in recent years.

3.   Cory is hunting for the tiny red dots that are varroa mites, a voracious pest that latches onto honey bees and sucks their blood like a tick.

4.   The mint kills and weakens varroa mites and renders them unable to reproduce, Amrine said.

5.   The varroa mite, the size of a small tick, attaches to bee adults and developing eggs and lives off their blood, weakening and killing them.