> Therein lies a quandary. Try this thought experiment. Imagine we have a 
> superbee now that is adequate in most ways. It won't be accepted by the 
> pollinators until it's proven in the field. Where would you find a 
> commercial beekeeper willing to risk all that he has worked for and give 
> up the easy fix of chemical control?

Therein lies the problem -- all or nothing thinking.  We see it in the "No 
Treatments - Never!" camp and in the Drug and chemical addicted camps.

We are not going to make the quantum leap to no treatments.  Some apparently 
do, but that approach is too risky and uncertain for most.

And, a superbee is not at all what I am advocating.  It will never come to 
be.   I am advocating making sure all commercial stocks are moving steadily 
towards disease and pest resistance.  That path is not risky and it is not 
difficult.

We are getting towards universal tolerance to varroa and other problems by 
baby steps, and one giant hurdle is the fact that some US queen producers 
are not getting on board the effort to bring up the *background* resistance.

At risk of confusing the issue, some complain that *Australian imports* are 
diluting American resistance efforts.  This may or may not be true, since my 
understanding is that the better Australian breeders import stock that has 
the desired resistance characteristics, but I really do not know.  I 
suspect, though, that if we want to find major culprits, that looking closer 
to home would be equally or more rewarding.

I should add, too, that even having a superbee does not mean nobody will 
treat.  No matter what, some will treat automatically without even 
monitoring mites, however, my position is that maintaining highly 
susceptible stocks should be something that draws notice and unfavourable 
comment from other beekeepers.

Peer pressure is strong in this industry.  Currently the peer pressure is 
towards thinking about treatment, not prevention.   We need to change the 
focus.

Merely shining a spotlight on those who ignore the public good can produce 
change.

Don't think that a queen producer who get the same questions about disease 
and pest resistance from every customer repeatedly is not going to get with 
the program.
 

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