>Some of us remember much stronger summer hives and better wintering, but
> so many factors have changed -- cultivars, farming methods, climate,
> treatments, bee pests and diseases -- that I don't think we can really
> know exactly what is happening.
>
Yes, admitting that we don't yet know is a step in the right direction.
I've had the benefit of keeping bees in non agricultural areas the last
several years, free of ag chemicals, and free of synthetic miticides. Yet
I agree with Allen that things have certainly changed, even when I keep
varroa levels way down.
I am currently working (and have so for several years) with various
researchers to whom I send samples from sick colonies for analysis (after
checking for varroa and nosema myself). Some are from colonies
collapsing, some from those that just can't manage to build up, some with
dying adult bees, some with sick brood.
Yet the analyses often come back without being able to identify the
responsible culprit. Not any of the viruses tested for, not nosema, not
EFB, not any of the 171 pesticides in the USDA screening.
There is apparently something that we are overlooking. Jerry Bromenshenk's
insect iridovirus is a possibility, or another unknown virus. Or Allen's
prion. Or maybe the UFO people are right : )
It is easy to blame this or that, but without supportive evidence, one
cannot build a legitimate case. I can see the sick colonies or dying
individual bees with my own eyes, and can eliminate many of the usual
suspects by either lack of exposure, or by lab analysis. And then I'm left
empty handed.
I know that something is making the colonies sick and depressing their
buildup or survival, and can often tell you what it isn't, but can't
determine what it is. It's frustrating as hell! Years from now we may
look back and wonder how we could have overlooked the actual cause(s).
--
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com
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