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From:
Tom Sanford <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Discussion of Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 11 Dec 1997 13:12:58 -0800
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Adding to the thread on tracheal mite history:
 
From the pages of APIS
<http://www.ifas.ufl.edu/~mts/apishtm/apis93/apapr93.htm#7>, April 1993.
 
TRACHEAL MITE--ANOTHER CASE FOR RESISTANCE
 
My recent trip to Northern Mexico revealed that problems with tracheal mite
in that region described in the mid and late
1980s have abated. The reason is not clear, but a good guess is that
susceptible stocks have been naturally replaced by
those more resistant to the mite. This pattern of disastrous infestation
followed by recovery has repeated itself elsewhere. It
is instructive, for example, to look at an article first published by John
Anderson about Isle of Wight disease associated
with tracheal mite in the Scottish Journal of Agriculture. Vol. 6, pp.
181-191 and reprinted in The Speedy Bee, Vol. 21,
No. 4, April, 1992. I cannot give justice to the full article here, but am
selecting quotes which are revealing about the
course of tracheal mite disease from 1906 to 1920:
 
"Stocks affected rapidly dwindle, and usually succumb in about a month or
six weeks, leaving their stores, and often a
quantity of brood. The queen appears to keep healthy and survives to the
last....A pasty mass of pollen grains is contained
in the 'colon' or lower bowel of the bee and the insect appears to have lost
the power of voiding it. Pressure on the
abdomen will often rupture both the colon and body-wall. Bees
crawling...will revive if warmed and fed, but the power of
flight will not be regained."
 
"Bees have recovered after treatment with numerous cures, but they are found
to recover quite as often when left
untreated. This disease is fluctuating in character, and we have thus
perfectly honest testimony to the virtues of a long list of
specifics from disinfectants like bacterol, yadil and dioxygen down to
flowers of sulphur and aromatic chalk. Any
treatment...whether by drugs or otherwise, that would prolong the life of
susceptible stocks of bees would distinctly hinder
regeneration of British bees."
 
"Nature has succeeded where man has conspicuously failed...there is a large
body of evidence that recovery is well
advanced in the regions first attacked. The character of the
disease...changed somewhat in recent years. When first noticed
it was worse in summer, but now it was seen chiefly in the late autumn and
spring. Isle of Wight disease used to kill bees in
a week or two. We have here one more illustration of nature's way with an
infectious disease. Bees differ in their power of
resisting this disease...The susceptible bees tend to die out, but this only
makes more room for...the more resistant."
 
"We must replace susceptible bees by resistant bees. When buying fresh stock
we must carefully avoid bees from the few
secluded glens that the disease has not yet reached...We should rather buy
bees from surviving stocks in districts already
swept by the disease. Even without co-operation of the beekeeper, biological
law will in due course relegate Isle of Wight
disease to a position of little importance. But why should we stand by?"
 ==============================================================================
Dr. Malcolm (Tom) Sanford, Extension Apiculturist, University of Florida
Bldg. 970, P.O. Box 110620, Gainesville, FL 32611-0620
Ph. 352/392-1801 ext. 143   Fax 352/392-0190
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
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