...I'm going to try and combine responses here.  Obviously, I don't have a problem with disagreement..but at least I'd like people to disagree with what I'm actually talking about:

1.  Peter, if you read my post closely, you will see that Richard Taylor was quoting an older beekeeper.  I don't know if Richard Taylor used this practice (I don't have a copy of the book...perhaps you have access...it's the "How to do it Book of Beekeeping").  Considering that you often post excerpts and quotes from studies and writings of others without claiming to agree with them or follow their recommendations, I expect that you understand this.  Perhaps you have some dirt on the person Taylor was quoting (Dr. John Eckert) that would be more relevant?  Perhaps you know if Taylor actually used this practice?

2.  Bob, I think you misunderstood me (and perhaps I wasn't entirely clear).  By no means do I think rendering wax kills spores.  I think there is good evidence that limited exposure leads to resistance...at least the 3 observations (one first hand) support this thesis.  I don't think these practices should just be adopted (and neither was Michael Bush suggesting combining colonies as a management practice).  The fact of their effectiveness teaches us about the actual nature of bees, and for those of us trying to "figure out bees" on any level, such information is valuable.  WRT AFB in Dee's operation....I've been through almost all of the hives (600-700) in almost all of her yards at least twice over 3 years.  My wife and I also have cleaned out 2000 of her deep frames that were out of service and preparing them for new foundation.  I've seen 1 AFB deadout.  I've seen a small number of combs with small amounts of scale (which were all left in service).  If this didn't work (with her bees in her area), all her bees would be dead...they are not.

3.  Randy:
>What makes you think that things have to be out of balance for AFB to be an occasional problem?

Well, in situations (ones that I have already cited) where bees are allowed exposure there does not seem to be much of a problem.  Not too different than visiting Mexico and drinking the water.  The locals have no problem with the water (their gut microbial systems are adapted to the microbes present in the water).  Over time, your gut microbes will adapt to the situation _unless_ you avoid drinking unbottled water and/or take pepto on a regular basis...in those situations, you will get sick if your drop your guard for a second.  This is what we are seeing....bees must be kept away from AFB, or they must be treated in order to keep them from coming down with a fatal case (one that will spread to the other susceptable bees in the area).  I've cited 3 cases where exposure appears to lead to resistance.

Allen, you were asking earlier about what might be affecting the honey stomach bacteria that appear to have some interaction with AFB (perhaps resistance).  The Swedish researchers seem to have some data that feeding sucrose over the winter kills these novel (not known to exist anywhere else on the planet) microbes.  Last I spoke to Randy, he was going to contact Tobias for clarification on this point...Randy, did you find anything out?


deknow



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