Bob
> I thought varroa only jumped around a 100 years ago but I doubt researchers know for sure.

Tom Glenn writes:
In 1905 the trans-Siberian railroad was completed, opening eastern
Russia to the rest of Europe. The European honeybee was imported into
this area which had only been inhabited by the Asian honey bee Apis
cerana, the natural host of Varroa mites.

The Asian honeybee and varroa mites have co-evolved into a balanced
host/parasite relationship without much harm being done. Varroa only
reproduces on drone pupae in these bees, and drones are only available
part of the year, so high populations of mites never build up.

When the European bees encountered varroa, things were different.
Varroa is able to reproduce on worker pupae which allows extremely
high numbers of mites to build up. This high infestation eventually
kills the colony.

Every beekeeper can help in the effort by using some of these Russian
bees in their hives. Drones are produced from the queen's unfertilized
eggs, so all drones from the Russian queens will be 100% Russian. This
fact will greatly help in the spreading of the resistant genes, as
drones fly for miles in search of queens to mate. If all goes well we
may see the emergence of Varroa resistant bees across the country.

****************************************************
* General Information About BEE-L is available at: *
* http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/default.htm   *
****************************************************