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Wed, 9 May 2007 06:32:43 -0400 |
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If you bring bees from somewhere that has never seen Varroa or Tracheal
are you better off or worse?
Short term, you are probably better off since you start at zero
infection. So you see good results right off but in time nature will
take its course.You postpone the inevitable if mites are able to move
into your area, or have been there all along. But, in time, you will be
worse off than if you used local bees or stock that has been confronted
with mites.
That can be seen in humankind with diseases unknown to one group
infecting another on first contact (i.e. smallpox and Native Americans
and syphilis and Europeans). It is opposite of all the research into
making a tolerant bee, such as Medhat's work with Tracheal, or
importation of Russians, Yugo and other bees that might be mite
tolerant. It is also opposite all of us who try to raise our own from
survivors, trying to get a healthy bee that survives in local conditions.
As with Native Americans and Europeans, it works both ways. You may
bring in a bee that is tolerant of diseases found in the old area but
not in the new area. You think you are bringing in healthy stock, but
really have no idea what pathogens may be present since the bee has
dealt with them long ago, or has never been stressed by mites for the
disease to appear. The bees in the new area are susceptible and may die
off in large numbers.
So it is not far off the mark to question the advisability of bring in a
bee that has never seen Varroa or Tracheal, especially since it seems
counter to everything else that is going on in the "stressed" rest of
the world. It seems more advisable to use stock from stressed areas,
just as most researchers are doing.
Bill Truesdell
Bath, Maine
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