Recent discussions have raised an interesting question.  What are the
definitions of 'hygienic behaviour' and of HYG, and have they changed over
the years?

I recall the days when Steve Tabor was a lone voice crying out in the
wilderness, claiming wonderful things for hygienic behaviour.  His preferred
test was to cut a section of comb, freeze it and put it back, then see how
long the hives took to remove the dead brood.  This was being hygienic --
removing dead brood, and thus a good surrogate for ability to find and
remove diseased or dying larvae.   AFB was the big concern then, and the
main target.  Pin pricks were also recommended earlier on. Later Jerry and
others popularized the test, and the idea.  "Hygienic" was the word chosen
somewhere along the way, and there were no mites at the time, so the idea
related to clearing the hive and removing dead larvae and scale.

Hygienic: [adj]  tending to promote or preserve health; "hygienic habits
like using disposable tissues"; "hygienic surroundings with plenty of fresh
air"  Synonyms: healthful, hygienical, sanitary

*Sanitation* was the thinking, then, but now we have mites that infect
otherwise healthy larvae, and, in a session (was it at the CHPA or the
ABF -- was it two years ago?  Can't recall) a speaker (Marla?) referred to
'hygienic' as *including* the locating and removal of perfectly healthy and
undiseased larvae that were infested with a varroa mite.  At that point, the
hygienic bees on offer were quite a bit less than wonderful at finding an
ejecting mites in brood.  I questioned that expanded definition at the time,
but did not get an answer. Bob was there, too, but seemed to be used to, and
comfortable with, what seemed to me to be a mutated or expanded definition.
Seems to me that there is an obvious difference between a reproducing varroa
mite on a live, healthy larva and dead or diseased larvae.

Since then -- and particularly since people have been increasingly equating
removal of varroa-infested brood under the catch-all term, "hygienic
behaviour", in spite of the fact that Harbo in recent meetings indicated
that in his opinion there is (may be) a difference between the mechanism and
the genes responsible for what he isolated and the other, more conventional
hygienic traits -- I've been wondering -- did the definition shift, or was
there ever a clear one?  ...and who is the authority who defines terms like
'hygienic' and 'HYG'.

(No, Joe and Keith, please do not just hit, "Reply" and give an opinion.  I
want to hear from someone who has been around for a few decades was there,
and actually knows -- Jerry, perhaps).

allen

Furious activity is no substitute for understanding.
            -- H. H. Williams

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