Hello Brian & All,
In this post I will explain my testing of the Aussie bees over the last FIVE
years. Terry Brown asked me to put his bees through the paces. Terry made
three trips to Missouri to look at my tests.
The first year I introduced Terry Brown to Dann Purvis ( expert on
instrumental insemination (II) and closed breeding programs), Terry brought
Dann to Australia ( along with the latest in II equipment purchased by Terry
brown) Over several weeks Dann retrained Browns Bees personal on the new II
equipment and set up a closed breeding program from Terry Browns breeder
queens.
Terry Browns breeder queens:
I have explained in many of my articles the strict nature of getting queens
from other countries imported into Australia. To keep this post short only
the larva of said queens are removed from the cages and the import queen and
all the equipment and bees are destroyed. Some of the queens imported were
the most varroa tolerant queens from Italy. Buckfast queens (tracheal mite
tolerance) and others.

I wish we had such a system in the U.S. but we do not. In 2005 Glenn Davis
( Bell Hill Honey ) & myself each received 26 breeder queens from each of
the lines imported in Australia. The next year Dann Purvis received 47
breeder queens which he had chosen from the Browns Bees import breeder
queens while in Australia.

We received those genetics legally while a famous U.S. queen breeder was
busted for trying to bring carni queens in through Canada. Aphis only
slapped her wrists but if we had a similar queen import system we would all
benefit and stop illegal importations!

So I think the list can see that the Aussie bees I use are very tolerant of
varroa & tracheal mites. We have had pure buckfast bees and not simply a
Weaver queen inseminated with Buckfast semen. I see no chalkbrood in my bees
and low tracheal mite levels..

Perhaps what myself and Danny Weaver ( Weaver Bees Texas)  are doing by
bringing in those new genetics might be the best kept secret of beekeeping.
Since 2005 Danny Weaver claims no treatments with his smart queens. Hmmm.

Danny is a very talented beekeeper and comes from a family famous for
cutting edge queen rearing.

I am very happy with the Aussie bees I run today and have used over the last
five years. In fact I have seen improvement each year since Dann Purvis went
to Australia and the 2009 bees being the best all around bees (except for
being a bit nippy but all large clusters can be nippy when no flow is on.)

The Aussie bees from Browns Bees are not very different than my other 
Italian lines but the bees are prolific, excellent brood viability, good 
honey producers and are not prone to swarming.
My other line is a cordovan Italian. I run a yard of Aussie ( leather 
colored) and two to three miles down the road a yard of cordovan Italians. I 
alternate lines . Both lines can be told apart with a glance by color but 
every hive is marked with year & queen source. When a queen is superceded in 
either yard the unmated queen usually flies past the yards DCA & usually 
mates with drones from the other lines drones. I have been using this method 
for a few years now and now believe maybe time to share my research. When I 
walk into a yard of cordovan bees and you see leather colored workers then I 
know the queen has been superceded BUT the cross of U.S. and Aussie genetics 
in most cases produces hybrid vigor which usually in the long run makes up 
for the supercedure time lost. Helps with the after swarming hive.


Pressure is being placed on the Aussie package bee industry as we speak to
help U.S. beekeepers bring their hives up to pollination grades with package
bees. Granted the
whole U.S. industry might not always need the package bees but some of the
beekeepers which have protested the  Aussie import have changed
their minds when the Aussie package bees help save their almond pollination
contracts.

Aussie package bees were imported into Canada for over two decades and no
new problems were brought in.

The Aussie packages are available to U.S. beekeepers when no U.S. packages 
are available. Same with the queens. Gus Rouse ( Kona Queen) has talked 
about starting his queen rearing earlier in the year to fill orders earlier 
but to my knowledge has not happened yet.

Sincerely,
Bob Harrison
Missouri, U.S.A.

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