The NSW Department of Primary Industries is pressing ahead with its plan to exterminate honeybees, but the deadly varroa mite is still being found in red zones.
The department said two new detections of the mite had occurred at Mulbring in the Hunter and Tumbi Umbi on the Central Coast. It said a program will begin to euthanise wild honeybees in the eradication zones in Calga, Somersby and Wyong.
This baiting program - which involves use of the toxic pesticide fipronil - has already been introduced in other red zones.
An enormous number of bees have been euthanised on people's properties since the mite was first detected at the Port of Newcastle in June.
However, bees are still being seen in the red zones - including the Hunter - reviving questions about whether the department can eradicate the mite. No other country in the world has done so.
Newcastle beekeeper Neil Livingstone said he recently spotted a swarm of an estimated 60,000 bees in the Mayfield area.
"It was the biggest swarm of bees I'd seen in donkey's years," Mr Livingstone said.
"Where did they come from? There's not supposed to be any around."
Mr Livingstone has for some time questioned whether all wild bees can be eradicated, given they're hard to find.
NSW Department of Primary Industries officer Dr Satendra Kumar said killing the wild honeybees was part of the national varroa mite response plan.
"Bait stations will remain in place for at least 12 months, but will only be in active use with fipronil insecticide for short periods of time - to a maximum of three hours," Dr Kumar said.
Mr Livingstone has questioned the need to euthanise bees, saying beekeepers should be taught how to live with and treat the mite.
"I don't believe they'll ever get on top of the varroa mite," he said. "I'm just so sad to see bees being destroyed."
The Hunter-based Honey Wines Australia said last month that multiple registered beekeepers had been waiting to be contacted by the department for their bees to be eradicated. They learned that the department was relying on the registered beekeepers to "self-report" their hives. Nonetheless, the company backed the bee cull and "biosecurity experts".
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