Hi Scot > Dee never mentioned nor hinted at trachael mites starting out > as external parasites. She has merely stated that mites have around > for a long time. She has not mentioned it in this recent round of discussions, but I suggest you visit the BioBee archives (wherever they now are). Dee and I have had many, many discussions about many, many aspects of bees over a six or seven year period... Among them a conjecture by Dee about Tracheal mites invading bees due to increase of size (of the bee that is). http://www.bee-l.com/biobeefiles/members/ is the only thing I can find, but perhaps I'm not looking in the right places. Regards & Best 73s, Dave Cushman, G8MZY http://website.lineone.net/~dave.cushman or http://www.dave-cushman.net Short FallBack M/c, Build 6.02/3.1 (stable) -- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l for rules, FAQ and other info ---