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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Bee shortage hypothesis

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: Steve Bonney <sustainableearth.steve@verizon.net>
  • To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Bee shortage hypothesis
  • Date: Mon, 16 Apr 2007 22:55:27 -0400

Lon,
Your descriptions of honey bee losses are plausible, but do not fully explain the current situation of colony collapse. The bees are gone and honey remains in the hives. Two years ago I purchased nucs of bees that were bred from colonies that survived the great losses due to varroa mites over the past ten years. I lost all them during the winter of 2005-2006 even though the colonies where strong approaching winter. I had a bee researcher at Purdue look at a couple of hives and he could only surmise that the bees died from mites. However, he and I were both baffled by the fact that, although all the bees were dead, there were very few dead bees in the hives. I have no idea what is the cause, but it is a situation that I have never observed in more that 20 years of beekeeping.
Steve
Indiana
zone 5a




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