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Date: | Mon, 3 Jan 2022 09:29:38 -0500 |
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> See Tom Seeley on the low survival rate of swarms in general
Perhaps you haven't read his most recent work. He writes:
> The persistence of honey bee colonies living in woodlands in the Americas, Africa, and Europe, despite the spread of the deadly mite Varroa destructor, shows us that honey bees are remarkably resilient. It also shows us that if we conserve forests and other wild places, then we can be confident that wild colonies of honey bees will thrive and provide an important reservoir of this species’ genetic diversity (Seeley 2019).
My purpose in starting this thread was not to present a point of view. I have already done that in my article "Black Box Beekeeping" (in which I explore the myth that bees do better when "let alone." Rather, I do not view this as an "open and shut" case. I find that quick answers reflect the notion that we already know all we need to know; or else, lack of interest in considering the matter more in depth.
The original post stated that we could learn from observing the colony in nature. This is the same thing that Seeley is saying, 100 years later. I may not agree with his conclusions but I definitely think there is something to be said for studying the positive or negative effects of the actions we take regarding the bees in our care. I am not proposing "let alone" beekeeping, but I do suggest setting aside pat answers.
PLB
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