> Well, let's ask Aaron. Maybe I was dreaming, but I thought
> I am sure that was her I heard clearly recommending
> something very much like that at Apimondia when she said
> every beekeeper should try to maintain at least one
> yard without any treatment whatsoever, in order to observe and select.
> Aaron queried her at some length publicly.
Yes, the not-so infamous "Bees going south" query! Specifically, Marla was
addressing not treating for Varroa (it was Varroa j. back then although
Apimondia '99 in Vancouver was the first public announcement of Varroa d.).
Marla was speaking of her hygienic strains and recommending that at least
one yard remain treatment free too keep selection pressure up so one could
identify what (if any) hives were able to withstand the assault. The
questions were asked, at what point should the beekeeper step in to save
what may be shaping up to be a total collapse of an entire yard.
Unfortuantely situation of "a total collapse of an entire yard" was worded
as 'the yard going south", which Marla interpreted as the beekeeper
migrating the entire yard to Florida or some such thing, and the poor
international translaters were totally lost! If you were there it was
really quite comical.
But I believe Marla's answer was stick to your guns, and if the entire yard
collapses then there was nothing in that yard worth savaing as far as
selecting for resistance (in this case Varroa resistance). I have since
heard Marla state that her hygienic stock is more sussecptible to Varroa
when compared to Harbo's SMR lines, but superior with respect to AFB. This
is another issue (select for one trait at the expense of others) that has
been discussed before. But yes, Marla did recommend leaving a yard
treatment free to keep up selection pressure in reference to Varroa.
I have heard similar recommendation regarding treatment-free yards from
others in the research arena. Dr. H.R. Shimanuki has recommended getting
off the TM merry-go-around, a yard at a time, but the context here was not
regarding selection for resistance, it was solely to stop treating with
chemicals. Shim recommended stop treating on a yard basis, keeping diligent
watch on that yard and he was clear to state that any AFB outbreaks were to
be cured by fire.
I've heard Steve Tabor recommend harboring disease, but this was in
reference to chalkbrood. I doubt highly that he'd draw lines between chalk
and AFB. Steve preaches the only way you're going to breed bees resistent
to whatever is to keep whatever around in your apiary so you'll know which
stock resists and which stock succumbs. And again, the context of what he
stated publicly was chalk. He cautioned that you must be wary of the source
of your pollen (if you feed pollen) because pollen from an unknown source is
likely to contain mummies. Then he went on to boast that it is the mummy
laden pollen he wants so he can be sure his stock will be chalk resistant.
If his bees can't stand up to the pressure he culls the bees. I have never
heard Steve say the same thing about harboring AFB (perhaps because most
states have laws against harboring AFB - although frankly, I doubt Steve is
one to care excessively about laws) but I'd bet he keeps the same sort of
pressure on his bees when he's selecting for AFB resistance. I imaging he
has a supply of spore ridden combs that he seeds his breeder hives with,
breeds from the survivors, culls those that break out. In fact, this may be
in print in his book _Breeding_Super_Bees_, but I cannot say for sure.
Personally I wouldn't try this at home and don't recommend it. My strategy
is to buy the stock from those who are doing the assessments, and even then
all hives are suspect. Claims are one thing, actual performance is what
counts.
> What they *do say* is to try to develop Hygienic Lines.
> This is done by inserting frozen brood into the brood nest
> and breeding from colonies which clean out dead brood quickly.
> This requires no diseased hives.
Yes, this is the current recommendation. This will identify good
housekeeping bees, which can be an assist to keeping AFB at bay. However,
there may be other things that assist AFB resistance independant of good
housekeeping habits. Some bees may have physiological advantages that may
help with AFB resistance that may be lost when selecting for good
housekeeping habits (select for one trait at the expense of others).
> It also seems to me that I did read an article in which
> Steve did say that he was not concerned about AFB in in
> his outfit and even considered it a good thing when selecting.
Again, I recall he says something similar in _Breeding_Super_Bees_, but I
would only recommend this to the VERY FEW beekeepers who pay that close
attention to their bees and their bees' needs. For most, this is playing
with fire. If you likely to get burned, buy the stock from reputable
breeders who make a living selecting for and raising it.
> Moreover, recently, I had a chance to observe Lusby's
> operation.
What, did gravity stop working? ;-)
> Dee said she and Ed argue about whether to pull that (infected)
> frame or just to let the bees handle it. We just left the frame,
> marked the hive, and moved on. (Note: Don't try this at
> home, kids. This will not work for most other beekeepers.
YUP! Unless the beekeeper is EXTREMELY skilled, playing with AFB like this,
or as Tabor hints, is begging for disaster.
>> "Long-term control strategy needs to include AFB-resistant
>> bee stocks that are widely available to all beekeepers. The
>> most likely stock will come from a hygienic-behavior breeding
>> program. Furthermore, beekeepers should be encouraged
>> to inspect the health of the brood in their own colonies at
>> least once per year. Heavily AFB-infested colonies or those
>> that fail to respond to chemical treatments should be destroyed.
Just though that deserved to be stated a third time!
Aaron Morris - thinking leave playing with fire to the fire-eaters!
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