Nick wrote:-
 
That is, bees don't *have* to be exposed to mites, for instance, for
them to have developed some of the defence strategies that would make
them capable of dealing with mites.  'Resistance' may in fact be the
presence of more generalised grooming, housekeeping, sanitary or
whatever characteristics - which may well be present or bred for
without the colony ever being exposed to the pest/disease.
 
 
This may be a very long shot, but here goes, I think we need lateral thinking (apologies)
 
Now, has anybody tried to dump a particle which of a similar size and shape to a Varroa on the
bees, would this entice them to clean off all the particles, including the mites in the process,
maybe it could be slightly sticky. Presumably bees groom eachother, especially when the
contamination is severe, such as wen flour is shaken on the bees etc.
 
If an "artificial mite" was produced which was inert, or made of food grade plastic then there
would be no chemical problems with food production etc.
 
Have I been staring into this screen too long ?
 
Steve Pearce