>
> >Varroa destructor Mites Can Nimbly Climb from Flowers onto Foraging Honey
> Bees.
>

I was discussing this paper with Dr. Seeley last week, and related an
observation that I made a couple of years ago.  We were quantifying the
efficacies of formic acid and thymol at killing mites under the cappings,
by using a cappings scratcher, and then banging the  pupae and mites out
onto the lid of a hive.

This resulted in a layer of often-injured pupae spread out over an area
roughly the size of the frame.  After counting the live and dead mites, we
walked away from one lid, forgetting to brush the pupae off the lid.  A few
minutes later, I noticed that one newly-emerged worker had survived, and
was standing upright in the middle of the carnage.  This was in full summer
sun.  The poor bee had about 10 mites on it.

Upon further inspection, it appeared that every live mite for a distance of
roughly 5 inches in all directions, had located that unfortunate bee by
sense of smell, and crawled over the dying pupae to climb onto it.

Re transfer upon flowers, the first question would be whether mites ever
crawl off a bee onto a flower.  The second thing to test is whether mites
will transfer to a bee that smells differently, should two bees from
different hives bump into each other on a flower.


-- 
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com

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