> ...we had put two strips in the hive about 7 days before I had a chance to 
> collect bees from that hive... I do not think this would affect my test 
> greatly as far as resistance. Do any of you?

Inasmuch as the results were that the mites are running 15% in the sample, 
since you report 15 mites on 98 bees (or was it 15 + 1?)  -- and that is 
just counting the Apitan resistant mites.

Even if there could have been some additional, non-resistant mites there a 
week or two ago, the result indicates a very serious problem.

With that many resistant mites, it seems obvious that the mite population is 
sufficiently resistant that Apistan is almost totally useless for your 
operation.

Also, you can safely assume, IMO, that if mites in one hive in one yard are 
Apistan resistant, that the mites in all hives in all yards are also 
resistant to Apistan -- and consequently that that applying Apistan will 
have little, if any, effect.

Mites get around .  They travel from yard to yard on drones, drifting bees, 
swarms and robbers -- not to mention beekeepers' trucks.

I have seen evidence demonstrating that varroa show up in an isolated yard 
which we stocked with Australian (varroa-free) packages, within a week of 
installing -- all during pretty poor bee weather!

Thanks for keeping us in the loop.  We'll be interested in whatever Tony 
recommends. 

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