Jerry said: "Regardless, these bees are surviving without the impact of antibiotics or miticides, and historically have been recorded to have moved into these areas many decades ago. Could there be some interesting insight into honey bee microbiomes here? Some of these populations may have never encountered Varroa and may collapse if domesticated, but it would be nice to be able to work with them and find out, without the influence of large numbers of transient colonies."


Jerry, your post was most interesting! It puts the proper perspective on the reasons for the proposed migratory beekeeper ban in your part of Utah.   Having just returned from travels touring Utah, Nevada, and Colorado, I am most impressed with the wild landscapes there and agree, that most commercial interests in beekeeping are not well served by bringing hundreds of colonies into that climate.  I appreciate the forethought of the ban, intended to preserve the uniqueness of the colonies that currently survive in the southwest high altitude deserts (on very little forage).   I hope the effort to enact a ban on commercial migratory outfits succeeds, because protecting feral bees for study will ultimately be for the benefit of all.


Best regards,

Christina

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