> >And we beekeepers need to educate ourselves, btw. The onus is on us.


I'm in complete agreement Scott!  It is not a matter of "saving the
bees"--rather, it's about one's gleaning of state-of-the-art knowledge from
researchers and successful beekeepers, and then applying it practically.

The honey bee population in essentially every country other than Australia
is in the midst of coping with the invasions of two or more novel and
serious parasites (varroa, *Nosema ceranae*, and SHB, not to mention
predation by the Asian hornet or competition from *Apis florea*).  Couple
that with poor nutrition due changes in agricultural practices, the effects
of climate change, exposure to novel pesticides, and the homogenization and
transmission of pathogens and the overstocking of pasture due to
large-scale commercial migratory beekeeping, and bees are struggling to
keep up with what we throw at them!

We have forced the honey bee into rapid and intense evolutionary pressure,
and I'm amazed that they are doing as well as they are!

Keep in mind that one does not keep bees in a vacuum.  Anyone who
establishes a colony of bees within 5 miles of another beekeeper is in
competition with his neighbors for resources, and the genetics, pathogens,
and parasites in his/her colonies have the potential to affect all
surrounding colonies.  And if that beekeeper sells honey, wax, or bees to
others, then that beekeeper is a business competitor to all other
beekeepers who have a financial interest in beekeeping.

As I sometimes point out to beekeeper support organizations, it's not their
job to try to keep every ignorant or unwilling beekeeper in business.  We
are all competing in the same marketplace--for locations as well as for
sales of product.  It's not  our responsibility to help our competitors
(although many of us unselfishly do).

That said, the failure rate of new beekeepers has always been high (even
before varroa), and is even higher nowadays.  And since commercial
beekeeping has gotten more difficult and expensive, many beekeeping
businesses that failed to learn and adapt have gone under.

I see little difference between evolution in nature and evolution in
business.  Competition is tough.  Those that best adapt to ever changing
circumstances tend to be the winners in the competition.  Such adaptation
come from educating ourselves, and then applying what we've learned.  As
you say, the onus is on us : )

-- 
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com

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