Hello Doug !
        I am a beekeeper in Belgium, french speaking ! My english is very
poor ... excuse me !  You say ...
 
>   Looking through a catalog for bee suppliers I have come across "Steve
> Taber Tracheal Mite and Disease Resistant Strain of Bees", they
> offer "old Fashoind Leather Colored Italians" and "Hybrid Type Strian
> of Carniolns".
>   Anybody know anything about these bees?
 
My answer at this question is : I don't know but this is the situation here :
 
Before the '60s, and till 1966, the acarapis w. mite produced a lot of
problems to beekeepers in Belgium, France, UK ... The bees died at early
spring (falling on the ground in front of the hive, without flying) and we
treated with some acaricide smoke (PK tickets first, Folbex tickets
afterward).  In local publications, you find different advices to avoid bees
lost.  In 1962 and 63 : no paper; In 64 and 66 : recall for treatments.
Since 1967 : absolutely nothing at all ... thus no problem !
 
In the '70s and after, NOBODY SPEAKS about acarapis mite but I am sure that
we have always this mite endemicly because ...
 
 1. I recorded one case indisputable in Feb-84 : one (out of 14) colony
    died, the others had no problem !  It is the unique (analysed) deadly
    case I hear for 15-20 years. But acarapis may be responsable of some
    other winter bees lost.  In any case, there is no comparison with the
    '50s hecatomb !
 
 2. Each FIRST day of flying in early spring ("first" is important, at the
    second day the phenomenon decreases strongly) in Jan or Feb or Mar ...
-- with acarapis, the first flying day after the winter is very important! --
    While most of the bees are flying before the hive, you see one or two
    dozen of bees running on the ground.  I think there aren't mite free !
--- When really you have problem, hundreds (thousand?) of bees are running --
--- on the ground and climbing on the grass without flying.  Horrible !    --
        --- And at this time, you can do nothing more than see ! ---
 
Actually, in Belgium and maybe in whole Europ we never hear about this
problm.  It seems to me we have got a quasi-resistant bee to acarapis w. mite.
 
Now, our beekeepers are using a lot of different bees : the native is brown
(apis mellifera mellifera) but I think it is not yet pure for a long time,
carnica (from Austria and Germany), ligustica (from Italy), Buckfast, a
'multi-hybrid' (from UK), &c.  And never we hear about acarapis mite ...
Thus ... It seems they are all quasi-resistant to acarapis mite ?!
 
Salut !
 
30-APR-1993 10:11:56 BE time
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 Jean-Marie Van Dyck                    Medical School - Biochemistry dept
 B.P. 102                               Fax +32 81 72 42 72
 B-5000     NAMUR(Belgium)              email : [log in to unmask]
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