>I feel that treatment free bee keepers allow their bees to suffer by not
> providing safe and simple husbandry measures to control mite populations.

We, as human feel mite and insects bites.  We itch, develop welts, feel pain.   Clearly our livestock also does.  I've seen cows in areas with large fly and/or mosquito outbreaks circling, tails switching, shivering, distressed even to the point of not feeding.

Our own closeup videos of mites on adult bees clearly shows the bees trying to remove mites from their own thorax, abdomen.  My guess is that the bees feel some form of pain or distress from mite bites.

When testing bees for ability to detect scents, some chemicals cause them to vigorously scrub their antennae with their feet.

Based on observations of bee responses - I'd not be surprised if having mites biting them may be similar to fleas or bed bugs on ourselves.

Jerry

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