> A reporter pushing to meet copy limitations could well reduce your
> explanation to "CCD is caused by poor management", and justify doing so on
> the basis that CCD does not occur in an apiary where good management keeps
> varroa and nosema under control, like Bob Harrison does.

I agree. I quit doing TV stories because reporters change the meaning by
cutting out parts of the interview. I trust one reporter at the K.C. Star
and the others I do not do interviews  as usually my information gets 
twisted.
Been burned too many times. If I can read before publication then I will do
a story.

I deal in reality.
Over the last many decades of beekeeping many hives have died. Starvation is
common in operations.
Bees with heads in cells starved! Beekeepers say the bees died within inches
of honey. I say most of the time the cluster was simply too small to expand
out and reach the honey. No matter when you see a deadout with bees with
heads in cells the hive starved. I have had plenty of those over the last
fifty years.
Mostly from Italians eating up the stores and me not being able to get into
the yard to solve the problem.

Today losses in commercial beekeeping are running yearly between say 30% to
50%. Less than 10% in years gone past would be a reasonable figure. Most
these losses started in 2006 and have continued.
Many depopulate 10-20% dinks a year but most beekeepers do not consider
those as losses but simply good management by rebuilding and queen
replacement. Most count the CCD losses in hives dying with proper stores and
should have survived. We find hives now with no bees and plenty of pollen
and full of honey. I can't say I have seen this common before but common 
now.

David Mendes ( President ABF) said in his operation he has been running
around 50% losses since the start of CCD ( source ABF convention).

The above is the reality of this thing called CCD. Dave Mendes is only still
in business ( Daves own words) because of his constant splitting ( after
pollinations) to keep hive numbers up.

The *reality* is most of the major players in the bee industry today come
from several generations of beekeepers and all I speak with agree some
unknown element is effecting the bees. The element might be nothing new and
only a combination like I put forward ( nosema ceranae and virus issues) or
another combination.

The largest single beekeeping operations in the world are in the U.S.( I was
involved with the second largest since the start until the owners
retirement 40 years ) .

 Beekeepers have fought every new beekeeping problem but
mites and small hive beetle are easy to understand. What is going on in the
hives today is not! The best U.S. researchers have not come up with
*serious* solutions.

To say CCD is simply all poor management is not accurate. When losses climb
commercial beekeepers pay attention and my phone rings. Experiments are set
up. Researchers are brought in. I can honestly say that whatever is going on
can happen on all new equipment  and can spread through apiaries.

The problem has persisted past what we have seen in beekeeping history such
as "disappearing disease'.

As a beekeeper on the front lines and in contact with many of the major
players I see no improvement in the losses. *in my opinion* CCD will go the
way of "disappearing disease" when losses in large operations drop back into
the normal range.

Pointing fingers solves nothing!

 I am a solutions person. When asked to help
I listen to the story and check the bees and deadouts. Ask a few questions
and then give a solution. Beekeepers are at times upset with a solution but
after they sleep on the solution most take the advice. having a beekeeper
with no agenda look at a problem and give an honest opinion on a solution
has helped many beekeepers.A couple of my solutions have involved the 
beekeeper spending large sums of money.

Commercial beekeepers look for guys like me. My current solution to hive
loss is splitting as Dave Mendes does. disinfecting old equipment and
replacing comb.

I admit I do not know *exactly* what the issue with bees crashing is( or at
least right now I can not prove my several hypothesis) but I do know that
splitting, disinfecting comb and replacing comb will keep you in business.

my 2 cents worth.

bob

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