re: list of what kills bees
I think this is an excellent question and also look forward to thoughts from the community. Unfortunately I have no hard data to contribute, only anecdotes from our local bee club. Those anecdotes suggest that at least for our part of the country (northeast Ohio) tracheal mites belong on the list (though near the bottom) and that small hive beetle is rapidly climbing the list.
I would categorize viruses like I would categorize skunks - an omnipresent stessor that can make any of the real killers worse. That's a matter of semantics, though. You could equally well say that viruses are the real killer and varroa is just the stressor. The difference I think is that the average beekeeper can do something about varroa. We have no direct control over viruses.
Mike Rossander
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