Hello Chris & All,
Chris said:
to  be
> disease free and suitable additions for release into the general gene pool
> as
> Sue Cobey is doing.
>
I am not sure Sue sets the best example. Aphis had a talk with Sue this
spring about her methods. Yes virus can be brought in with semen. Yes semen
needs Aphis approval to be imported.

So far Chris our knowledge of virus as virus applies to honey bees has not
changed since the work of Bailey, Ball & Carrick. Since CCD several
researchers which I could name but will not have *suggested*
(hopefully the right word) that virus is part of our current bee die off (
CCD?).

Back before CCD I helped with virus issues brought on because of varroa in
the second largest bee operation in the world. We had quite a back and forth
with Ball & Carrick (U.K.). Norman shared  research with me he was to
present at apimondia on virus. I read ,promised not to pass on, and gave my 
opinion.

The bottom line and will be my opinion until those researchers pushing the
*virus is a problem to honeybees* can provide support for their hypothesis 
is to rely on the long standing work done in the U.K.
.
My opinion  will be based on the many years of research done by Bailey, Ball
and Carrick.

The research in the U.K. (which Chris is very familiar with) says all the
virus of honey bees without the complication of varroa only cause minor
problems in bees. The research presented at apimondia by Norman Carrick
showed that bees can handle varroa without problems without virus. Norman
( also Bailey & Ball)  also showed that virus without varroa has little
effect on honeybees. The two combined is the issue.

The bottom line has always been if you control varroa then you see little if
any virus ( named PMS parasitic mite syndrome). It has been my experience
over the last decade that PMS can be seen in colonies with less than
threshold varroa loads but its also my experience that all virus issues
disappear when varroa controls are in the high 90% range.


Since the bee die-off  named colony collapse disorder (CCD) some have said
what we know from the research of Bailey ( has found and named more virus
than any bee researcher on the planet) , Ball & Carrick *might* (correct
word?) be suspect.

However they present only hypothesis based on a couple years of research on
a small number of samples.

In the Florida case I worked on we found if we controlled varroa the virus
issues went away EXACTLY like Ball & Carrick said.

One CCD researcher said they have discovered new unnamed virus in CCD
samples. So? What's to say they have not always been here. As a lifelong
beekeeper I can say that most of us only looked at the work of Bailey with
casual interest until varroa arrived. Dr. Shiminuki clearly explained that
virus (PMS) is not an issue with bees unless varroa reaches high levels.

However virus can play a role in hives weakened by other things.

What does it mean. Until current research can prove that a certain virus is
capable of killing bees in a hive free of varroa then the hypothesis that a
virus is somehow responsible for widespread bee die off is strictly a
hypothesis. Bailey found that virus issues in bees *before* varroa only
cause minor problems.

It is my opinion and from discussion with many commercial beekeepers that
spending a great deal of research funds chasing the * a virus is killing our
bees* hypothesis is a waste of funds.

The cure for virus issues has always been better nutrition, control of
varroa and a possible genetic solution.

I do not post to hit a nerve but only to voice an opinion based on a large 
amount of dealing with varroa/virus issues. digging through stacks of 
correspondence from the U.K.


bob

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