" if you were to select from
the top 50% of the breeding population for each of the 5 traits
independently, you'd wind up being able to breed from 3% of your breeding
population.  Simple math 0.5 to the 5th."

The key word here is independently.  How many of these traits are truly independent?  For example, if you select for honey production you are automatically selecting for a variety of traits that result in superior honey production.  Some examples would be life expectancy, rapid spring build up, disease resistance, superior flight muscles, good wintering ability and superior egg laying by the queen.  You would also automatically be selecting against swarming.  My personal opinion after a life time of breeding critters and looking at the history of how breeds were developed is that breeder selection should be kept pretty simple as so many desirable factors are so often co-selected automatically. If you try to select for five things you likely are selecting for nothing at all as your selection process is too complex.  The problem in bees is different climates and different business models can impact which factors a given individual wants to select for.  The almond guy above all else requires fast spring build up.  If you select for that you probably automatically get superior egg laying by the queen, disease resistance and likely big colonies that make a lot of honey unless swarming wrecks the honey crop.  But swarming may not be that big a deal for the almond guy as he shakes bees to sell after almonds which inhibits swarming in his particular business model.

I am trying to make two points here.
1. Many traits are interdependent and selecting strongly for one can give others automatically.
2. Which trait you want to select for can highly depend on your particular business so there is no one set of breeder selection questions that are universal.

Remember, some people even value bad temper and view it as desirable.  Some people value little tiny unnatural sized bees and work hard selecting for them.  Some people value light yellow bees.  Some people value solid black bees.  Some people incredibly even value  swarming.

If you really want to do a complicated selection there is a way to do it with science and puters.  You do it using DNA selection techniques much the same as are used today in Holstein cattle for milk production.  If you really want to make real progress this is the way to go.  As the song says, "all it takes is money."  But a caution.  Between back yard open matings, ferals and polyandry in bees you could make a killer good bee and it would not last past one generation in commerce.  The U of Minn showed us how to make great honey producers nearly 100 years ago and today no one has the equivalent.

Dick

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