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Date: | Sat, 6 Nov 2010 20:15:22 -0600 |
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>>BUT I'm wondering if this one thing, treating with antibiotics somehow
tipped the balance in favour of the varroa. Maybe varroa mites have
bacterial enemies.
> I was watching Diana Samammatero's presentation on beneficial microflora
> in honey bee colonies and this comment by you came to mind. Looks like it
> could line up with your thinking in that it may be directly or indirectly
> related.
> http://www.extension.org/pages/ABRC2010_Beneficial_Microflora_in_Honey_Bee_Colonies
Thanks for the link. I had heard that Diana had said some interesting
things and took in two different talks by her at that same conference.
Apparently this talk was one I missed. The others were more general,
speculative-sounding and omitted the slides of the syrup, supplement and
pollen feeding experiments (or else I must have dozed off?). This
presentation as more specific and scientific. I had been waiting for
something more than 'may' and 'possibly', and this presentation was more
definite, although I notice that she is careful not to suggest that we know
much.
(I have noticed that scientists often tailor the presentation to the
audience and have been very disappointed by a talk by a noted speaker in one
session, then blown away in a subsequent one later the same day in a
different session).
I guess we all know that there are microorganisms associated with pretty
well everything, but the ecology is so complex that we have a hard time
knowing which are beneficial and which are harmful and which are not or even
if these value judgements can be made since the effects are so interrelated
and may only appear under specific conditions. Even with our high-powered
and effective medicine, there can be side-effects which are unpredictable.
Obviously when we introduce chemicals into a bee hive, we are unhappy with
some aspect of the current equilibrium and expect to change the balance in
the hive in a direction we favour. It seems, though, that as with many
things there may be unintended consequences.
Of course, in regard the varroa bloom, I am speculating wildly.
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