Aethina tumida

Photo by James D Ellis, University of Florida, Bugwood.org

Brown-black beetle that consumes honey bee eggs, brood, pollen and honey within the hive, as well as laying eggs throughout the hive
The hatched larvae chew through the combs causing the honey to ferment and the hive to become ‘slimed out’
Large numbers of Small hive beetle can result in the death of the colony or the colony absconding
Present in NSW, Qld, Vic and parts of SA and WA, but has not been reported in NT or Tasmania