> The fact that in the study you mention stress was t
Hi Steve and All

> The fact that in the study you mention stress was the same for
> all colonies just means that stress was not a part of the test.
> Stress may not be easily measured, but it certainly can be
> induced.

Agreed.  Remember that the report said this:

'The colonies that had been irradiated showed a 70% survival rate, which, in the world of commercial beekeeping isn't too bad, unfortunately.'  

With 70% survival being typical it certainly sounds like the management systems employed stress colonies.

all the best

Gavin (whose current 60% survival rate suggests that his practices are worse than those of US commercial beekeepers!)

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