> Exactly.  It could be that the "Durban strain of Aethina tumida" will
> turn out to be slightly LESS threat to managed bee colonies and honey
> crops, but the information at hand appears to indicate that it is at
> least "just as bad", if not worse a pest as the type (or "strain", or
> whatever) that has been plaguing the Southeastern USA and other
> countries.

An added concern is that this SHB may find a different niche than the
niche occupied by the current US SHB.  I suppose if it were to merly
compete with the existing SHB for their niche, it would not be a problem
in the US, but, is it known that it will not jump to something
unexpected?  For example, some of our 'wax moths' have several habitats
other than bee-related equipment.

In Canada, we do not have SHB, other than in one location where it was
(wishfully considered to be) contained and extermined (we'll see).  We
got this SHB infestation -- in a region with very cold winters -- due to
our ever-vigilant CFIA permitting (unknown to beekeepers) some beeswax
refuse into Canada for rendering.

As it happens, CFIA is the very regulatory agency that bans Canadian
beekeepers from obtaining imports of US queens -- including the very bee
strain (Russian) that promises to reduce our concern about mites.  Fear
of mites are the reason we closed the border.  Go figure.

The import of US Primorsky queens in volume would reduce or eliminate
our need to use miticide chemicals (which CFIA also tests for).  We
cannot (legally) buy US queens even under proposed extremely rigid
protocols, and even from regions of the US that are not known or
suspected to have any of the usual pest suspects.

This total ban on legitimate, inspected queen imports has -- naturally
enough -- led to smuggling.  That, ironically enough, means that,
instead of certified, inspected queen imports, Canada receives queens
(tens of thousands annually) that are not inspected by *any* independent
authority.  There is more discussion of the politics behind this
nonsense on my current diary page.

> b)  If Canada chooses to continue to allow imports of Australian
>      queens and packages under these conditions, this would be
>     grounds for some pointed questions about the basis for the
>     ongoing Canadian ban on queens and packages from the continental
>     US.  The most likely phrases to be trotted out would be
>     "non-technical barrier to trade" and "unequal treatment".

If it walks like a duck...

>  their varroa "problem" allows them to start working on a bee that
> would actually be worth buying, as bee importing nations need and
> want varroa-resistant bees, rather than what NZ currently exports.

I've been thinking the same thing.  I've had some NZ bees over the
years.  Mind if I add AFB resistance and good wintering ability to that
wish list?

> Bottom line, imported bees are not a bad idea at all,
> as long as everyone can assure that they are importing nothing else.

Who can argue with that?

allen
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/