>>formulations of lead, arsenic and mercury were applied to crops >>in 1400s. I'd argue that crops provided minimum forage to honey bees back then. There was no big agri-business. Most colonies were kept in bee trees in the pristine forests. A substantial part of the people's food in Europe came from forests back then. Waldemar ****************************************************** * Full guidelines for BEE-L posting are at: * * http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm * ******************************************************