After spot sampling around 20,000 hives this past week, I can report that 
rumours of the impending death of the honeybee appear to be greatly 
exaggerated, at least up here in the Great White North.

From what we see, most operations in Alberta have wintered well and are in 
top shape.  The bees look really good.

On the surface, it appears that intensive and coordinated monitoring and 
treatment has paid off.

Feeding fumagillin proactively and knocking varroa levels down and holding 
them in the 1% (phoretic) range has apparently returned success rates to the 
normal range after several years of unacceptably high losses over winter, 
followed by poor bees in spring.

A few beekeepers who have not been vigilant and proactive have experienced 
much more variable success, with a few losses as high as 70% -- and they, 
sadly, serve as controls of a sort.

FWIW. 

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