randy oliver wrote:
>
> Bill, we had collapses before varroa, so IMO, varroa would be classed
> as a secondary contributor. But a damn strong contributor nonetheless.
As I noted before, Varroa and the bees can get along with high Varroa
loads if there is not added factor, such as virus. Then it depends on
which virus, since there are many.
There were collapses before Varroa but the most recent were caused by
Tracheal, again a mite that can be in a colony with no problems unless
there are added factors.
It is a semantic issue since, I agree, that Varroa is not the killer,
but it is the door opener for the pathogens to do their work. Just as
Tracheal mites were earlier.
My contention is that most reported CCD in the eastern US is Varroa
related. The reports in the west (where you are), which were the
original ones, seem to have no common base, including Varroa, but there
was a drought which may have muddied the water. If there is something
that causes CCD, the answer is in the west, not the east.
Bill Truesdell
Bath, Maine
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