>We've all seen mites on bees in places other than over the fat bodies.  If fat body feeding is the norm, does every mite succeed at feeding at the five star restaurant, or do some mites have to settle for the local diner?


Yes, we've all seen phoretics on tergites or the thorax and other places, but I've always questioned if those mites are just holding on without feeding. The ones discussed as feeding are more commonly found tucked between the sternites having pierced the flexible tissue in the abdominal area where coincidentally, fat bodies are generally believed to be.  

>So, my question to the list - how does one separate the fat body from the hemolymph?  The fat bodies need raw materials to synthesize proteins, and the synthesized proteins have to be delivered to cells.

If you are suggesting that separation regarding biological interdependence is not possible, I think that's the case. But, I'm reading that fat bodies have a separate and distinct cellular structure, which leads me to believe there's a  possibility that fat bodies, or fat cells, can be consumed, to some extent, separately. 
  
Ramsey analyzed mite excrement that contains about 95% pure guanine and made his conclusions about their diet from there - haven't seen a paper yet.  





Bill Hesbach
Northeast USA

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