Long-range dispersal of small hive beetles

Small hive beetles (SHB), Aethina tumida, are parasites and scavengers of social bee colonies in their endemic range in Africa as well as in the USA and Australia (Neumann and Ellis, 2008; cf. Hoffmann et al. 2008; Halcroft et al., 2011). It is currently unknown whether adult SHB which have emerged from the soil but have not yet conducted any flights are attracted to neighbouring host colonies or conduct long range dispersal instead. Here we studied whether the presence of neighbouring host colonies distracts migrating SHB.