Contact Us - Northern Territory

Varroa Development Officers are available to support and advise beekeepers on all aspects of varroa management.

Varroa Development Officers, or VDOs, are critical members of the National Varroa Mite Management Program. 

Their role involves helping recreational and commercial beekeepers understand and implement Varroa management techniques, improve hive health and undertake sustainable hive practices.

Together with other team members, VDOs help improve industry resilience and capacity.

To get in contact with a VDO in the Northern Territory, contact Karlee Foster, Varroa Development Officer, by completing this form.

Northern Territory Varroa Development Officers

  • Karlee Foster

    Varroa Development Officer

    As a Plant Biosecurity Officer I’ve been actively involved with various plant pest detections and responses in the NT and soon developed a particular interest in honey bees and the people that manage them. I’ve been working with beekeepers across the Northern Territory for the last four years, these days as dedicated NT Bee Biosecurity/Varroa Development Officer. Originally hailing from Tassie, I arrived in Alice back in 2008 with a community cultural development background and soon fell in love with the Centralian bush. Full time indoor work was no longer for me - I re-trained in horticulture and developed a strong interest for native, rare and endemic arid flora alongside an appreciation of pollinators and their quiet but significant contribution to our everyday lives.

    Now as an Alice Springs local of 16 years, I’m passionate about practical, face to face, hands on learning opportunities – something that an email or a phone call just can’t do sometimes. We have a small, but significant beekeeping community in the NT. By stakeholders working together we’ve managed to keep other significant honey bee pests and diseases out of the NT and I’m determined to do the same with Varroa.