>> if you take the total amount of imidacloprid fed to the hive, and divide
it
>> by a "conservative" number of bees (80,000)...

Help me out here. I cannot see the logic of increasing the dose so it will
be a realistic dose for the individual bee. The rational seems to be that
even though the concentration is lower naturally, by increasing the fed
concentration that somehow is more realistic based on th assumption that
the amount is cumlative and concentrated.

I find that a bit much, especially from an academic.

First, we are talking about ppb, a concentration. Let us put a swimming
pool full of sugar syrup at 1ppb in a field with one bee colony.

Then, in another field, a 55 gal tank full of 1ppb sugar syrup and one
colony.

At the end of a week, which colony will have taken in more syrup?
Obviously, all things being equal, both will have taken in the same amount
of syrup.

But if, in that swimming pool or 55gal tub, we increase the concentration
to 2ppb, you will find an increase in the hives, even though they take down
the same amount of syrup.

In nature, the analogy fits the swimming pool metaphor, with loads of
plants with lots of nectar available at specific a ppb. The Harvard study
violates it with unnatural concentrations and the assumption that somehow
this reflects nature and accumulated concentrations.

Plus, the Harvard study does not reflect what has been found with field
tests.

Feel free to point out deficiencies in my argument.

Bill Truesdell
Bath, Maine

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