Roy wrote:
> Hi Aaron and All,
> Artificial insemination of queen bees, with a diverse gene pool,
> gathered from unrelated drones, will help us in facing some of our
> beekeeping problems.The fact, that in the USA , we have 8 family's of
> Apis mellifera as studied by Dr. Sheppard WSU ,in a two year DNA survey.
> We do not have a great genetic diversity to start with for our queen
> breeders.So leaving it up to nature and not doing some selective
> breeding is shooting ourselves in the foot.Instrumental insemination
> allows us control some of the traits that we are looking for in our
> bees.
Note: He said "traits" plural.
> The queens that I purchased last year did very well. I did my homework
> on what stock selection the breeder was using and the fact that he was
> using semen from 100 drones from various hives to do his insemination.
I applaud you, Fella!
> I believe in nature, but we have
> to be smart enough to see and understand how She works.We need to use
> the tools that we have come up with, to improve our stock.
>
> Roy Nettlebeck
A-HA!!! At last there is a post that I shall not ride the fence on. BRAVO Mr.
Nettlebeck! An excellent post that I found hard to abbreviate for response
citation here.
I am but a novice beekeeper; but I do do something about limited gene pool
selection for diversity. The only caveat that I will make to my endorsement,
is that I remain wary of the term "selective breeding". The process that you
describe above is emphasizing diversity and randomness within a restricted
genetic barrier. And yes, we CAN understand nature and how She works, and
cooperate with and even assist her.
The queens that you purchased last year had a broader random opportunity of
uniting DNA with prospective mates by intentional process, than they would
have had if left to their own devices. This "structured randomness" is good
for the species! It strengthens the bee on our continent in a way that they
themselves are incapable of doing right now. Good for man for doing something right!
Now, if someone begins selecting for a single trait. We are in for trouble and
I withdraw my endorsement. If the entire industry begins selecting for that
trait, then I will run and hide until the smoke clears. If some omniscient
breeder decides that "this hive" or "this strain is the best because it
________ (fill in the blank) then he or she is doing a very bad thing indeed.
If we are truly "selectively breeding" and select for the most docile bee, we
may develop the least productive bee. If we select for the most productive
bee, we may get the most aggressive. If we select for the biggest, most
weather resistant, or any SINGLE trait, then we error. We may, in fact, wind
up with a bee that a single virus or parasite can wipe out in a few short seasons.
I, myself, have posted requests on this list looking for the heartiest bee I
could find for my northern climate. I still wish to find that colony. But
apiculturists must be mindful that we are looking for the STRONGEST AMONG a
diverse race. We are not looking to develop the super breed by single trait
selective breeding.
Thanks Roy,
Steve
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Steve Andison
<BR>Alaska Resource Economic Development (ARED)
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