On Jun 28, 2010, at 9:20 PM, Carolyn Ehle wrote:
> inbreeding and lack of diversity as can happen here in the US. 

It is well known that inbreeding effects plague the breeders of various types of plants and animals, so it is reasonable to assume that honey bees *could* become inbred under certain circumstances. However, upon closer inspection, it appears that the mechanisms of honey bee breeding have evolved so as to largely prevent this. Were that not so, the bees in places like Kufra or Malta, would have become inbred and died out long ago. Instead, these closed populations have thrived. 

The honey bee populations of Europe and North America are huge in comparison and are not closed. Stock has been repeatedly mixed from all manner of sources, such as Italy, Germany, Ukraine, etc. The honey bee population is just about as diverse as the human population in these areas. This is borne out by recent research by Debby Delaney, and now Robin Moritz. I think we need to look elsewhere to understand the decline in the bees of Europe and the Americas. 

Peter Loring Borst
Ithaca  NY USA
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peterloringborst.com

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