Peter Edwards said: " Just for the record I have bees in 22 apiaries and
there are many other
> beekeepers in this area.  Not so sure about feral colonies - my view is
that
> they were all killed by varroa and we are now seeing the sites inhabited
by
> escaped swarms - which then die out - are replaced by more escaped swarms
> and so on.  Should we define these as feral?"

Escaped swarms are no longer managed by man in any way, so surely count as
feral. They develop full-blown disease and infect managed hives in their
area, making it virtually impossible for us ever totally eliminate diseases,
even if beekeepers 'saw the light' and suddenly became co-operative.
Peter's 120 hives seems to offer a good sample for testing the theory  that
just a few hives at random can suddenly show abnormal high Varooa
infestation  (due probably to robbing an infected colony) , if all the hives
are individually monitored?   Can I ask if they are?

Robin Dartington
>

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
-- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and  other info ---
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::