>>> > >If you had said "a direct measurement of the mite infestation rate of a
>> >_subset_  of the_adult_  population"

> Yes, should have said : )  Although I find that there is not that much
> variation between washes from any frame from the broodnest, nor  day to day.

On Thursday September 30th 2010, while on inspection duty, I found 
washes of 17 and 2 in the same hive. The first (2) was taken from a 
frame immediately above the brood in a strong fall double brood chamber 
hive. The larger reading (17) was from off the actual brood.

As for consistency of drops, here is a little from my current project:
http://honeybeeworld.com/diary/images/2012/dropsandwashes.gif
They seem quite consistent to me.

My detailed results from last winter's drops is at
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/files/drop.htm
and can be analyzed for consistency.  They seem as consistent to me as 
the many washes I have done and which often gave several different 
results _for the same sample_ each time the jar was shaken and counted 
-- often varying by as much as 50% an sometimes more.

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