Richard Goetze wondered;  "Are Varooa destructor mites jumping  matrilines
when drones mate? "

Jumping only when queens mate would give very little opportunity, especially
considering the chances that mites would fail to get a new grip and fall off
altogether.  Is it not more likely that Varooa spread via drifting of
drones?   Even in nature, when colonies are some 1 km apart, drones meet up
in assemblies and some may follow other drones back to strange hives.  Just
surmising - I have no experimental evidence.

Robin Dartington

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