Jane, There is an entire book devoted to this topic.  I have to dig a bit
to get the reference.  I suspect the author will pop up in a moment to
answer your question.
 
The whole idea of mites and feral bees is one that many researchers are
looking at.  The Tucson bee lab has had this on its agenda for some time
now.  You may wish to contact Dr. Loper.  Unfortunately, Tucson doesn't
have email.
 
Dr. Eric Mussen (spelling??) in CA reports all feral colonies have heavy
varroa infestations.  He predicts Varroa may wipe them out, leaving the
spaces available for Africanized bees.
 
Jerry Bromenshenk ([log in to unmask])
 
On Mon, 14 Feb 1994, Jane Beckman wrote:
 
> A thought just crossed my mind.  Has anyone done any studies on the effect
> of mites on Africanized bees, or is this an untouched area of study, so far?
>
> I find myself wondering if Africanized bees are more, or less, succeptible to
> mite infestation.  This could change the balance of feral honeybee populations
> across the west/southwest, depending on what the answer is.
>
> Jane Beckman  [[log in to unmask]]
>