>It's hard to ask a general question, because first of all, there is always
the obvious answer.  ( IE, >why is migratory beekeeping so hard on bees)

This "fact" is one that I often hear repeated among non-commercial
beekeepers - "migratory beekeeping is hard on bees." I must disagree. There
is a distinct difference between migratory beekeeping and migratory
pollinating. Wintering bees in the south and trucking bees around the
country to do paid pollination jobs are two different types of migratory
beekeeping. Not every commercial keeper does a great deal of pollination
gigs; in fact, most of my commercial friends only do one or two pollination
jobs per year (almonds and/or one other crop such as apples). Personally, I
don't do any pollination jobs due to pesticide issues.

I would argue that a great deal of commercial keepers have become migratory
(taking their bees south in the winter) in order to REDUCE stress on their
hives. Prior to varroa, one could successfully overwinter a commercial
operation with an acceptable rate of winter loss. Post-varroa, many
northern operators found that they simply could not get enough hives
through the winter and still have the numbers to make a crop the following
year. Thus, many of us began going south to FL or TX in order to keep our
hives alive and to make early splits the next spring. As for a 2-day ride
south on the back of a flatbed semi: no doubt it's a bit stressful on the
bees, but completely insignificant compared to sitting in a snowbank all
winter. The bees thrive in the south and enjoy an early buildup on natural
pollen and nectar sources, while their cousins up north often fail to
survive until the next season.

In my opinion, migratory beekeeping is generally only hard on bees if the
business model is based primarily on doing paid pollination jobs rather
than honey production. Pollination exponentially increases the exposure to
myriad pesticides, mono-crop pollen sources, and a great deal more time on
the back of a truck.

Jim

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