NW>From: Nick Wallingford <[log in to unmask]>
  >Date:         Sat, 16 Aug 1997 02:23:45 +1200
  >Subject:      Re: Hawain Queen Bees & Mite Resistance
 
NW>> If we continue to bring bees from mite free areas into mite infested areas
  >> I doubt we can improve the degree of mite resistance of our bees. If  we
  >> persist doing so, I believe we are fighting against nature.
 
NW>contents in a timely manner).  'Resistance' or 'susceptibility' to
  >mites is a hygenic behaviour not specific to having a mite present...
 
Hi Nick,
 
This is only one way that so called "resistance" may happen, and is not
exclusive.
 
My own idea on rearing queens and one that is followed by the majority
of those who do it for a living is: one should use the best stock..
 
Each of us differ on what is the best stock or how we go about finding
it, which assumes that we are looking and do not now have it. The only
way I know of testing stock is by hands on experience with it and I
would each summer buy 25 to 100 queens from several to a dozen other
bee breeders in the US, and including queens sent to me for testing
bootlegged from various research stations including daughters of all
imported stock.<G>
 
I can honestly say that excepting how these queens were handled by the
producer, or in shipment, that there were some differences, but this
was/is the exception. A difference is something that can be measured,
and in commercial beekeeping is must have a positive dollar value. Yes
I have had bees that produced many different eye colors, and drones
without hair, or bees with all gold color, these things are interesting
but are not cost effective as they are seldom the stock that produces
the most honey, but when they are those are included in the breeding
line or I would not have had them in the first place.<G>
 
The one big exception was stock from a old time caucasian breeder who
has now doing his bees in heaven. He shipped true sisters and his stock
was much more productive then the average. The summer divides made with
them produced much more honey then the total for the year made by the
hives they were made up from. In the millions of hive visits I have made
over the year I have never found any stock that was as gentle. I use to
take visiting beekeepers out to these hives in the worst of conditions
and just rip one of these hives apart with no smoke or protection for me
or my guests, tossing the bees into the air and never would anyone get
stung or would these bees make any attempt to sting anyone. Sadly the
breeder queens from this test were lost and the original breeder in
Georgia passed on.
 
Other differences found were the poor temperament in the Hawaii bees,
which are still purchased by many good beekeepers because they can be
had early in the season when no others are available and this is an
advantage to those who make up increase for others. I have no
reason to doubt that these queens are not as aggressive as they once
were, but I have not used them myself, and have not asked my neighbors
who do get them from beekeepers early each spring to make increase.
 
Another difference found through early experience was that some breeders
from the south had bees that were susceptible to Chalk Brood, something
that eliminates them from the breeder selection. It is safer to over
look one cell of AFB then one Chalk Brood mummy in a breeder queen, but
I would discard both myself.
 
The best queens are always those produced by an experienced beekeeper in
his own bee yards from his own stock produced for his own use. If you
can't get those then the 2nd best is the queen you pick up yourself from
a bee breeder within driving range of your own apiaries. After that it
is a crap shoot. The way you get experience selecting breeder queens is
by doing it yourself. Rank your own hives and keep a record on the hive
or in a book or pc. You judge them for the qualities you feel are
important to you and that can range from the color you want to the
amount of pollen that can be collected from them. The actual breeding
process can be as simple as using brood from that hive to start other
hives and queens the natural way to artificial insemination. Some bee
breeders will use your queen to rear queens for you, ask around.
 
Try as many other queens in your production hives as you can, it is a
fun thing to do and it is interesting to discover the not always so
obvious difference of other beekeepers stock.
 
One final word of caution, don't put your trust in bee breeders who
have the biggest advertizements. Some bee breeders spend more effort on
composing their adverting then working their own bees. Right now I don't
know of any real dud's, but in the past we have had a few real ringers
who made all kinds of claims in their advertising they could not live up
too and disappointed many beekeepers and picked their pockets clean.
BEE WARE, their is some safety in beekeepers working together so keep in
contact with your neighboring beekeepers and you hand on your wallet
when around those who want to sell you something, bee it information or
bees.
 
ttul, the OLd Drone
 
 
(c) Permission is granted to freely copy this document
in any form, or to print for any use.
 
(w)Opinions are not necessarily facts. Use at own risk.
 
---
 ~ QMPro 1.53 ~ ... Yet, like the bee returning to her queen,