>>> ...if your queen supplier sells you queens that are
>>> still susceptible to tracheal mites, find a new queen
>>> supplier. 

>> Is there any
>> sure way to know when purchasing queens, other than buying
>> strains known for the trait, regardless of other considerations?

>Simple.  You ask.

Not to argue, since I agree, but I advocated and even tried that approach 
and, found that it is easier to accomplish at the keyboard than in the 
real world.  

Although I did not talk to many, I found that most of the top guys I 
encountered would not make outright statements one way or the other, and 
none of my small sample used the facility set up to test for TM 
susceptibility on any regular basis.  They did say that they got any stock 
additions from breeders with good reputations, or that they had no 
complaints, or that they had spot-checked a year or more back.  Also they 
said nobody ever asked.

>Best of all, know your queen producer, look him in the
>eye on a regular basis, and listen to him. 

Looking him in the eye and asking seemed to cause almost universal 
discomfort, even on the part of those we assume should be confident.

>If they hem and haw, you hang up.

I have problems looking people in the eye over the phone, (other than on 
Skype, which is still not in widespread use by beekeepers).

>If they laugh and say "of course we bred in t-mite resistance
>years ago", you place an order.

Seeing as we know that TM resistance is an invisible trait that is not 
persistent (it can occur in some daughters of a top-notch queen and not 
others) I'm thinking that this is a crap shoot. "Years ago" is not now, 
and this trait disappears fast.

Add to that the fact that the queens often pass though several hands on 
the way to the small beekeeper (and often even large orders) that the 
queen suppliers often swap queens when short, or source from other queen 
raisers on short notice when making up packages, that plans change on 
short notice, and what might seem a clear-cut certainty becomes 
increasingly hazy.

>I've yet to hear of a queen supplier lying about something
>so basic, as it would be trivial to verify the claim.

It's not lying that is the problem.  It is the uncertainty and the 'slip 
betwixt the cup and the lip' that is so frequent and confounds us.

>as it would be trivial to verify the claim

I am not aware of what trivial verifications are posible.  The survey done 
by the researchers a while back was a big job, I should think.

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