I was going to change the subject to something like "Playing God" because
for me all this discussion about "natural selection" v/s "mass production"
(or commertial and capitalistic motivations) is sandy ground.
Do we believe Darwin and its "natural selection" when we know the honey bee
is basically the same for the past 40.000.000 years if not more?. I believe
in the bee case in some sort of adaptation or slow evolution when we say
"natural". And of course there were no Apis mellifera at southern Chile 200
years ago.
We need to agree on a set of basic rules to differenciate then what is
natural and what is not. Antibiotics, anestetics, Artifitial insemination,
sanitation, feeding stimulation, etc are part of the natural rules?
If we want to play God in this natural set of rules we need to ask ourselfs;
adaptation to what? How would the future bee?. If we are "commertial and
have capitalistics motivations" we are gambling, betting for a near term
future (next couple of months).
If we go over the selection through breeding, we still need to ask selecting
for what? and there are basic dialectic points: Early start versus swarming,
Feeding versus wintering, health versus survival, polen or nectar hoarding?
etc.
And yes if your operation is small (for not saying hobbiest or sideliner)
you do not have much from where to select (or choose). If you are big (for
not saying commertial) you have potencially plenty from where to select
(well, if you have done your homework since the start).
At this point the distintion between For profit and Not for profit is rather
useless, I play God on a different field, "Not for losses". With this
approach I am all the time asking questions and doing experiments. keeping
the broader mass of traits possible from where to mix and try different
solutions. I think that is the way nature works. Diversity.
The real question then is how to keep good records? How to be able to follow
up diversity? How much of the end result is based on what we do and how much
is due to "the weather", "the season"?
Accepting that we are gambling all the time, beting for a potential future,
the key for me is that we have a daily, monthly, season(ly), long term and
evolutionary future, and we have to take all those scales into account for
the "not for losses" managment.
Finally, as each beekeeping is local, there couldn't be just one bee that
fits all. My gamble is my gamble. My gamble is lots of individuals (traits)
from where to select the right couple to repopulate the future!. Try
isolated breeding to mix those traits, selecting the droones and the
mothers, try to keep good records to follow up results and keep on trying.
JMHO
--
Juanse Barros J.
APIZUR S.A.
Carrera 695
Gorbea - CHILE
+56-45-271693
08-3613310
http://apiaraucania.blogspot.com/
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