Jane Beckman writes:
>
> My
> understanding of Africanized strains is they tend to pack up the whole
> colony and swarm en mass, *not leaving behind a parent colony.*  It seems
> to me that this could very well have an effect with regards to mites.
 
[edited]
 
> --Jane Beckman  [[log in to unmask]]
>
 
The African honey bee may abscond due to disturbance or parasite loads,
and then the whole colony leaves, stripping any honey stores and leaving
no brood behind (usually). They also undergo reproductive swarming,
which is pretty much as in other races: a new queen is left behind with
old workers. These two (absconding and swarming) usually occur in
different seasons, since reproduction occurs during nectar flows, and
absconding is related to migration when nectar becomes scarce.
 
I assume that the AHB has retained these traits in the New World.
 
--
 Martin H. Villet
 
 Department of Zoology and Entomology   Telephone: 27 [0]461 318-527
 Rhodes University
 Grahamstown 6140 RSA                  Internet: [log in to unmask]