> I believe the nature of varroa leads to an inherent contradiction in a > breeding program. A strain of bees that keeps small populations, and > swarms often, will show a lot of varroa resistance. Beekeepers want large > populations and minimal swarming in order to get large honey crops. Agreed. That is why beekeepers have not rushed out to buy the strains that have proven resistant. Most are reluctant to take a chance on new stock which may require different management and which may not perform in their environment. Any stock where important commercial traits were not held above survival are suspect. The major marketing challenge for breeders is to prove to beekeepers that strains labeled as disease and/or pest resistant are also productive, reasonably gentle, manageable, truck-able, able to generate large populations in time for package production or pollination, good for queen rearing, winterable, economical with stores or whatever the buyer is looking for. In the early stages, buyers tried some of the selection that was being developed and many were less than pleased, so they have to be convinced somehow to try again, or a different strain. Hobbyists can be much less demanding and are not as sensitive to many of the traits listed, so make a good proving ground, especially if they report their experience and have several types of bees to compare. I've had bees that survived beautifully, but never made me any money. Commercials cannot afford that. *********************************************** The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html