Hello folks.
Recently I read a post on Bee-L citing one of Dr. Magnum's papers on robbing
bees bringing home mites. Since there was no mention of how his test was
perfomed I would like to point out that several years ago I published a test
designed by me about identifying bees that rob weak, dieying colonies and
bringing home loads of mites since it may be useful to corroborate
increasing mite populations in healthy colonies. This test was performed in
a yard with 39 test colonies in South East Virginia. The test is simple and
easy to perform. It is useful to demonstrate why colonies that have been
practically free of mites suddenly develop increasing mite drops especially
in the latter part of the summer and early fall. Brief summary of the test:
Using a variety of automobile touch-up paint kits and a toothpick, dab
pin-point markers on bees' wings in as many colonies as one might wish to
observe. Two or three days later, examine colonies in your yard, especially
those that may be weak or heavily infested with mites. To one's surprise,
those colonies will exhibit a rainbow of colors among the bees of those
colonies. Mite count tests on marked colonies will reveal increasing numbers
in the mite population and the presence of phoretic mites on foraging bees.
Best regards and God bless.
Dr. Rodriguez

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