I see no real difference between tolerance and resistance, as the bottom line is: do they die? My friend Tom Glenn has been very active in promoting and propagating resistant/tolerant bees; his web site says:

> USDA scientists have imported a strain of honeybee from Russia which are naturally resistant to Varroa mites. The imported queens were selected from bees which had been exposed to mite infestation for nearly a century. If natural selection can produce tolerance to Varroa, then these bees may be our best bet.  [both terms used interchangeably]

However, he goes on to state

> VSH - The state of the art line of bees for controlling mites and diseases naturally 

> VSH stands for Varroa Sensitive Hygiene, a naturally occurring trait of honeybees. This behavioral trait causes the worker bees to detect, uncap and remove varroa mite infested brood.

> Disrupting the reproduction of the varroa mites in this way effectively limits the population growth of the mites, often eliminating the need for miticide treatments. This line of bees was selectively bred by USDA scientists in an impressive example of science working with nature to provide a sustainable solution to a very serious problem.

> In 2001, Glenn Apiaries entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the USDA Bee Breeding Lab in Baton Rouge, LA. to propagate and distribute VSH queens. All of our lines of breeder queens now have the VSH trait incorporated in order  to produce an optimum balance of productivity and mite resistance.    

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Peter L Borst
Ithaca, NY 14853

> The opinions expressed here represent the opinions of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of those who hold other opinions.
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