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Date: | Sun, 31 Jan 2021 16:56:57 -0700 |
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> as a method for re-populating the world's honey bees...
Last I heard, there is no shortage of honeybees worldwide and there are
more bees under management than ever.
The idea that the world is short of honey bees is one of those popular
hoaxes that beekeepers don't fight and even feed a bit because it makes
us heroes rather than the pariahs beekeepers were in many circles in the
past.
If people want to build up feral populations, the worst way to do it is
with the commercial strains of bees we buy and which, at least to some
extent, sacrifice hardiness and disease resistance for unnatural honey
production and often bee production, too.
At the same time as breeders are trying to breed resistant bees, they
are simultaneously are working against that goal by prioritizing
production. What choice do they have? Production is what finances bee
sales and bee breeding.
A constant influx of imported commercial strains of bees into a region
defeats or dilutes natural adaptation by feral bees in areas where the
feral populations are making or might make headway against diseases and
pests. The constant importation of new problems and maladapted stock
each season can overpower any headway made to adaptation.
That is not to say we should stop breeding and buying bees, but should
understand that these bees are not going to help the feral populations
adapt.
The bees that may well be under pressure and there are many studies
confirming this, are not honey bees, but rather the native bees. I
think someone posted here that some thousands? of recorded species? of
bees have not been seen lately.
I am not certain of all this because I have not been paying attention,
but I know some on this list have the facts and numbers so maybe will
set this straight.
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