On Fri, 23 Feb 1996, Vince Coppola wrote:
 
>         I'm getting more reports of colony losses. Some can be explained
> by beekeeper ignorance, but some are not. At our last meeting two hobbyists
> reported high losses. In one case it was 100% loss of 40 col., in the
> other case it was 48 of 50 dead. Both treated with Apistan last fall.
> I know them both quite well and inspected their bees myself, so I can
> vouch for their capability.
>
>         The most amazing report is from a well respected commercial beekeeper
> here in WNY. He has kept bees since 1968 and runs over 1000 col. He has
> worked as an Inspector and knows dieases well. Last spring he put two new
> Apstan strips in each col., in March, took them out in June. He surveyed
> his operation in Sept. and found very low varroa counts. He made an above
> average crop. He saw nothing unusual last fall. He lost 80% with PMS
> symtoms.
>
>         There is much we don't know and I don't think we have all the tools.>
 
  Vince , Your last line should get some people asking some
questions.There is much we don't know and thats a fact.
    I don't know if we have all the tools , is pay dirt. We have tools
that need to be turned on.We need to have the tools that we have working.
#1 and most important is our researchers.These people need help in
getting the funds that they need so they can find a piece of the
puzzle.We need them to ask us for help. Everyone needs help of some kind.
If the researchers tell us to change something that we have been doing in
beekeeping with a test group of hives or when they do come up with
something that has been tested and works , then lets do what we can to
follow. I know that I'm not going to put all my eggs in one basket like I
did last year. I had a 30% lose and that was my cause. But I have been
writting to some very helpful researchers and I think some of them are
not to far off , but it has to be proven by tests. Some have told me that
we will not get rid of the Varroa mite. That sounds fair in the nature of
things. We need some bees that can keep them down to a level that will
that will not lowwer the productivity of the hive beyond an economic level.
 This is not a simple problem, it will take a lot of hard work by many
people. We can and should recrute those people that need our bees for
pollenation. They have a big stake in the out come.Use the tools we have
and get more if needed . Lets not get shy about it. If anyone has some
names of people that are friends in Washington DC , please drop me some
E-mail with there names. We have to have a few.
 We have some very fine researchers working on the problem right now. I
don't want anyone think this is a simple quest, It is very, very complex
but it needs to be done. We made the moon , not because it was easy.
 Have a GREAT day
  Roy Nettlebeck