This is the original report of finding three colonies with declines of 
mite populations in a standardized 10 week test published almost to the 
date 20 years ago.  Growth of mite populations for the whole set of 
colonies evaluated was associated with mite non reproduction.  This led 
to the use of the term SMR (suppressed mite reproduction) for this 
resistance trait.  Later, when the trait was found to be due to 
selective hygienic removal of reproductive mites, it was renamed VSH.

https://www.ars.usda.gov/ARSUserFiles/60500500/PDFFiles/301-400/341-Harbo--Honey%20Bees%20(Hymenoptera;%20Apidae).pdf 

The original VSH population was started from these colonies, but the 
population was not kept closed.  The trait has been found and magnified 
in a number of other populations using a similar process starting with 
single drone inseminations.  Search for Arista Foundation. 

 

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