On 8/12/2014 9:54 PM, [log in to unmask] 
wrote:

>
> Surely it must be desirable to have workers that live as long as 
> possible as they will spend more time foraging.

Yes.
> How can one select for longevity in workers except by using long-lived 
> queens. 

You are assuming that long life in a queen is proxy for long lived 
workers.  Do you have evidence for this?

> Frequent re-queening is short term thinking.

The whole point of farming is to produce more, or more easily.  In 
nature the "aim" of a hive is to swarm, and to do it as often as possible.

We wish to produce honey as easily (cheaply) as possible.  To this end 
the more hives that are productive the better.  Like a pig farmer that 
culls a sow after a certain number of farrowings, even though the last 
one was fine.  They know that if, as becomes more likely with time, the 
sow lays on her litter the cost has been to feed her since the last 
litter plus the time to this farrowing. Similarly with a bee hive.  When 
you notice that a queen is failing you have lost, or potentially lost a 
lot of production, perhaps for the rest of the season.

Geoff Manning

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