> What is the standard being used as a measurement?
> Inside diametral measure half way down the cell?
> Cell pitch (cell to cell centreline distance)?
> Is there a standard correlation between number of cells per square
> decimetre (10cm x 10cm.) and cell size?
> As with all scientific studies the metrology is important.

Check out http://www.rossrounds.com/HoneyBee/Misc/CellCount.htm

That page is the result of several days of hard work last spring (in
collaboration with Barry) trying to find any conclusive justification for
Lusby's theories.  Barry and I drew different conclusions from the effort.
There is a chart on the referenced page that converts all the valid measuring
systems from one to another. Without it, trying to understand all the talk on
cell size is impossible (IMO) and I always refer to it when the various
measurements come up in debate.

FWIW, the conclusion I reached with this whole matter as a result of my study is
that *maybe* there is a baby in the bathwater, but if there is, the explanation
is very probably not the one which is given by Lusbys, although there may be
some truth in some of their hypotheses.

IMO, natural cell size has not changed over 100 years in the bees that are used
in Europe and North America.  In some cases, the bee genotype has been changed
by importation and migration and selection, and we all know that different bees
use different cell size.

We also know that different people vary in their reading and reasoning skills.
To me that explains the controversy.  As for the effects of cell size on both
the bees and varroa, it is obvious to me that proper controlled observations or
experiments have not been made.  We have a collection of anecdotal evidence.

That is usually the basis for the beginning of an investigation, not the basis
for drawing conclusions.

allen
---
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