>
> Mr. Oliver,
>

Two questions:
1) Where did you get the assumption that 40% of the phoretic mites drop as
a result of the sugar dusting?

- granted, you need to start somewhere. But I think this assumption is what
drives the entire spreadsheet. Did you get that number from a study, or is
that just a guess?

2) More of a comment - the spreadsheet doesn't account for the theoretical
increase or decrease in the population of the colony itself, i.e. the "%
infestation" rather than the total number of mites per colony.

- given your original inputs, dusting with brood present appears to (more
or less) maintain mite levels. While dusting without brood present
significantly reduces mite levels (understandable). But while dusting when
brood is present, you are maintaining mite levels, the population size
should be increasing linearly (according to your recent articles), which
would be decreasing the "% investation", no?

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