On Tue, 23 Jul 1996, David Eyre wrote: > It would seem that our Southern cousins are the ones who are > suffering with these problems. Perhaps the time has come for you'all to look > North for new stock. Hi David, Many people I've discussed this with think that tracheal mites have something to do with this problem. Since Ontario has only rescently been invaded with these, it may be another year or two before you see this affect in your operation. > Our bees do not suffer with Nosema. Having imported a few queens from Ontario, I can assure you that your bees can suffer with nosema. I believe there were some outbreaks of nosema in your Province this winter. I agree with the rest of your post, especially regarding culling and selection. This is not a criticisism of the queen breeding in Ontario. I recomend Ontario queens to any northern beekeeper. We would be fortunate here in the States to have a program as good as theirs. With all the problems caused by the tracheal mite in rescent years, I'm amazed that this program has'nt gotten more attention.