> Maybe I have missed it...but what wax moth are we talking about? The
> small/normal one, Achroia?


Were talking about the Greater (Galleria mellonella).

My curiosity was about macroparasite intolerance in general.  To fight any
macroparasite, the bees must first recognize the pest, and then have
behaviors triggered by the stimulus of recognition.

This has implications for breeding bees resistant to varroa.  They must
first recognize the mite as a pest, and then have behaviors to deal with it
(grooming, VSH, etc).

What got my attention was the observation that there were strains of bees
that apparently hadn't evolved strong wax moth removal behavior, despite the
(apparent) fact that wax moth has been a pest of the European honey bee for
a very long time.

I'm not quite clear on what I'm hearing on the List--was wax moth not
present in the colder areas occupied by A. m. mellifera (in which case I
would not be surprised by lack of resistance behavior)?  I would expect it
to be common in the Mediterranean climate of A. m. ligustica, and would
expect strong resistance behavior.

Anyone have more info?

Randy Oliver

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