>September 24/48 hour natural fall mite counts averaged 3 - 5 mites. No
hives were over 10. Did sugar rolls counts on 8 big two year old hives to
double check and mite counts were all less that 3%.  Our summer dearth here
with our long natural brood break and 100 + high summer temperatures really
nocks down the mite population.

Thank you for giving us these actual numbers Don!  This really helps for
informed discussion.

Could you please tell us what area you are in, and whether there is any
Africanization in your area?

I also notice that hot, dry weather is really tough on mites.  How do your
bees do in non drought years?

FWIW, let's look at the big picture.  The honey bee population in North
America is in the middle of an evolutionary transition from being varroa
naive to eventually being varroa tolerant.  I feel that there should be
little debate that at some point in the future the bee population of N.
America will be predominately resistant to varroa.

The percentage of treatment-free beekeepers is a simple way to document
this transition.  To me, this is more interesting that arguing for or
against treatment free--I'm just interested in following the progression of
an expected course of evolution.

-- 
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com

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