> > Bees today are more resistant to varroa  than when varroa first arrived
> (and far > more resistant to tracheal mite).
>
> And there are specific people to thank for their efforts in this work.
> There was not any sort of "natural selection" at work in either
> achievement.
>

Pete, that is utter nonsense!  Steve Taber bred the first T mite resistant
stock, and I purchased some of the first queens.  But most other breeders
and beekeepers didn't. 

First, the quote was written by someone else. Secondly, I don't refer to anything you write as "utter nonsense." And believe me, there are times when I have thought that. Let's try to be a little more respectful. Moving along now ...

> Pete, I watched the California bee population evolve resistance to chalkbrood. 

I would simply like to point out that the disappearance of a disease over time does not therefore prove that the host became genetically resistant to it. The disease may have run its course, or the host may have developed an effective immune response. 

Immune responses are often passed to offspring through non-genetic methods. For example, your colonies may pass this response to the newborn workers, and to splits, but that doesn't mean the queens you sell will pass on a genetic resistance mechanism to your customers, twelve hundred miles distant. 

PLB

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