From MAILER-DAEMON Sun Jan 14 07:40:04 2001 Received: from listserv.albany.edu (listserv.albany.edu [169.226.1.24]) by luna.oit.unc.edu (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id HAA05007 for ; Sun, 14 Jan 2001 07:40:03 -0500 (EST) Received: from listserv.albany.edu (listserv.albany.edu [169.226.1.24]) by listserv.albany.edu (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id HAA00135 for ; Sun, 14 Jan 2001 07:42:59 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <200101141242.HAA00135@listserv.albany.edu> Date: Sun, 14 Jan 2001 07:42:58 -0500 From: "L-Soft list server at University at Albany (1.8d)" Subject: File: "BEE-L LOG0008A" To: adamf@METALAB.UNC.EDU Content-Length: 37288 Lines: 804 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 1 Aug 2000 06:38:50 -0600 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Cara & Tom Patterson Subject: Varostop In-Reply-To: <200008010002.UAA00595@listserv.albany.edu> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit I've searched the archives of BEE-L, Deja.com for Usenet and the web with multiple engines with no results except one page that I assume is in Bulgarian. Is anyone familiar with the varroa treatment Varostop from Bulgaria? If so, what can you tell me about it? Thank you Tom ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 12:08:20 +1200 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Nick Wallingford Subject: Query: Bee Glasses MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Someone who has written to me asked about 'bee glasses' which his great grandfather used to talk about. He was of the impression that they were somehow used in the process of looking for colonies of wild bees, perhaps as a means of better tracking bees on their return flight? Can anyone throw some more information at this one? Nick Wallingford nickw@beekeeping.co.nz http://www.beekeeping.co.nz ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 1 Aug 2000 11:10:36 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: "Swintosky, Michael D." Subject: Re: 'harmonization' Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Robert Mann made some excellent observations on the politics of economics and the impact on the environment. Especially important is his remark about the serious challenge to democracies. We all need to think hard on these things each time we make a purchase. That product may be the best buy at first glance, but is it really? Mike Swintosky Dellroy, Ohio ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 10:25:26 EDT Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: "David L. Green" Subject: Flower visitors: Web Page Update MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit We've just added a new section of *knock yer eyes out* closeups of flowers, bees, bee mimics and other flower visitors to The Pollination Home Page. You can go straight to this gallery at: http://pollinator.com/gallery/gallery.htm Enjoy. More pics should be forthcoming. Dave Green The Pollination Home Page: http://pollinator.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 12:40:45 -0400 Reply-To: midnitebee@cybertours.com Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Midnite Bee Subject: Pink Page update MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Greetings! Updated Pink Pages located here: http://www.cybertours.com/~midnitebee/contentpages/articles.html ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 12:05:28 -0700 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: John Edwards Organization: Hayden Bee Lab, USDA-ARS,Tucson, Arizona Subject: Re: "informed" beekeeping MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Nick Wallingford's site at http://www.beekeeping.co.nz leaves all the rest of us, IHMO, in the dust. It has easy links to a plethora of sites, easy-to use archive search engines, and much info. Mitchell wrote: > Would anyone here have recommendations for informative web sites, email > lists etc. for beginning beekeepers? This list is intended for "informed > discussion" - but where is the best place online to become "informed"? ----------------------------------------------------------- John F. Edwards Carl Hayden Bee Research Center Agricultural Research Service - USDA Tucson, Arizona 85719 http://gears.tucson.ars.ag.gov/home/edwards/edwards.html ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 17:03:53 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Bill Bartlett Subject: Re: "informed" beekeeping MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit but where is the best place online to become "informed"? > Thank you, > Deanna Dear Deanna, This is the best place! There are more people here with more knowledge about bees than anyplace else I know. There is just some that have been here for a long time and have heard a lot of the same questions with the same answers. They would also like to see a more technical discourse. Learn how to research past posts from the archives. Big help. At one time everybody that has ever graced this list knew NOTHING about bees. Billy Bee ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2000 07:54:15 EDT Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: JCHenry500@AOL.COM Subject: Re: Bee Glasses MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I have seen one pair of bee glasses. They looked like regular frames, but the lenses were "frosted", or translucent, except for a small central area about 3/4 inch in diameter. It was explained to me, that when one wore the glasses , the restricted field of gaze made it easier to to determine the path of the bees, and hence make it easier to track the bees back to their hive. I did not get the chance to try them. Charles Henry Little Rock ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2000 08:00:33 EDT Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Jean-Francois Lariviere Subject: Honey as Healer - more PR from NHB MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Honey as Healer! Ancient Healer Effective in Treating Infected Skin Lesions LONGMONT, Colo., Aug. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Jem Bonnievale was 15 when he contracted meningococcal septicemia caused by an infection of Neisseria meningitidis. By the time the British teenager reached the hospital, he had multiple purple batches on his legs and fingers, which rapidly progressed to tissue death. Both legs were amputated below the knee as well as fingers on both hands. He endured multiple skin grafts and suffered for months with non-healing infected sores. His case was extreme and difficult to treat because of the severe pain it caused. Over the next six months the success of the grafts was variable and the sores showed heavy growth of Pseudomonas and Staphlococcus aureus. All traditional treatments were tried without success. When nothing else had any effect on the chronic infected sores, clinical nurse Cheryl Dunford and her colleagues turned to honey. Dressing pads impregnated with sterilized active manuka honey from New Zealand were applied to one leg and a traditional dressing to the other leg. Within a few days, the honey dressed leg showed a reduction of wound bacteria. Both legs were then treated with the honey dressings. Within 10 weeks, all lesions were healed. Jem was released from the hospital, fitted with artificial legs and is getting on with his life. The use of honey as medicine is mentioned in the most ancient written records. Today scientists and doctors are rediscovering the effectiveness of honey as a wound treatment. Dr. Peter Molan, Professor of Biochemisty at Waikato University, New Zealand has been on the forefront of honey research for 20 years. He heads the university's Honey Research Unit, which is internationally recognized for its expertise in the antimicrobial properties of honey. Clinical observations and experimental studies have established that honey has effective antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. It painlessly removes pus, scabs and dead tissue from wounds and stimulates new tissue growth. "Randomized trials have shown that honey is more effective in controlling infection in burn wounds than silver sulphadiazine, the antibacterial ointment most widely used on burns in hospitals," says Dr. Molan. The significance of the case of the British teenager, as reported in the June issue of Nursing Times, is that it is the first case in which honey was used on multiple meningococcal skin lesions. The antibacterial action was evident as the mixed infection of Pseudomonas and Enterococcus cleared from the lesions in a few weeks and the number of colonizing staphylococci diminished to a harmless level. Dr. Molan believes that if honey were used from the start in cases of meningococcal septicemia, there would be far less tissue damage resulting. "The remarkable ability of honey to reduce inflammation and mop up free radicals should halt the progress of the skin damage like it does in burns, as well as protecting from infection setting in," said Dr. Molan. "At present, people are turning to honey when nothing else works. But there are very good grounds for using honey as a therapeutic agent of first choice." Researchers believe that the therapeutic potential of honey is grossly underutilized. It is widely available in most communities and although the mechanism of action of several of its properties remains obscure and needs further investigation, the time has now come for conventional medicine to look at this traditional remedy. With increasing interest in the use of alternative therapies and as the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria spreads, honey may finally receive its due recognition as a wound healer. Dr. Molan is analyzing U.S. honey varietals for their antimicrobial and antioxidant capacity. He will be in Denver, CO on August 31 to discuss his research with the National Honey Board. SOURCE National Honey Board CO: National Honey Board ST: Colorado IN: FOD HEA SU: 08/01/2000 12:00 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2000 08:28:02 -0700 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Adrian Wenner Subject: Re: Horse Fly Spray Caution Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Dennis M. Murrell wrote: >Caution should be used when using common fly sprays such as "Permectrin >II" or "Absorbine Ultra Shield"on horses with beehives in the vicinity. >These types of products can enrage passing bees and result in a dangerous >stinging incident for both horse and rider. > >I have kept my bees around horses for 30 years without incident. However, >a landowner began using these products daily on her favorite horse who >would be tied up in the same spot for each application. After several >days enraged bees began stinging both horse and rider and people in that >area. etc. Sometimes insect sprays have a "carrier" chemical. For example, the insect spray, "RAID," contained (or used to contain) methyl chloroform (1-1-1 trichloroethane) as a carrier, though not so indicated on the label. I found that that chemical by itself really stirred bees into an attack phase. Adrian Adrian M. Wenner (805) 963-8508 (home phone) 967 Garcia Road (805) 893-8062 (UCSB FAX) Santa Barbara, CA 93106 ******************************************************************** * * "When we meet a fact which contradicts a prevailing theory, * we must accept the fact and abandon the theory, even when * the theory is supported by great names and generally accepted." * * --- Claude Bernard, 1865 ******************************************************************** ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2000 19:03:55 -0400 Reply-To: mpalmer@together.net Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Michael Palmer Organization: French Hill Apiaries Subject: multiple queens MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I've always said that more often than we realize, there are two queens in a hive. Well here's a good one: Yesterday I was uniting requeen nucs with the parent colony, killing the old queens when I found them. I opened the parent, and upon pulling the first frame of brood (looking for the old queen), I noticed something was un-ordinary. The brood pattern was perfect. Zillions of eggs, and brood in every stage. In the middle of the comb was a hatched queen cell. I know that a honeyflow can make a poor queen look better, but not this good. I got out my shaker box and went to work shaking the bees through it. As they ran down through the excluder, they left a beautiful looking queen on top of the excluder. Ah, and there's the new queen I says to me. I continued to shake bees. With three combs left in the brood box to shake, I spotted the old queen on the excluder. The old rat tail I says. Cool! I just knew there were two queens in this hive. I begin placing the last comb back in the brood nest, when what just about jumps into my lap but another big yellow fatty. HA! From the looks of the two young queens, and the brood pattern, I believe all three queens were laying in the hive. Mike ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 3 Aug 2000 21:18:20 -0700 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: William Fernihough Subject: Honey Extractors MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable I am looking for a lost contact from Apimondia in Vancouver last year. = I was interested in the Karl Fritz honey extractor, had some = correspondence with an American or Canadian resource to buy them from = but lost it. Can anyone assist? ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2000 12:28:08 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: lynn & susan lang Subject: Re: Honey Extractors In-Reply-To: <200008040442.AAA10645@listserv.albany.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" William BetterBee located in Greenwich Ny has the Fritz extractors in the 2000 catalog, Telephone number is 1-800-632-3379. Just for general information, what do like about the Fritz extractor? Thanks lynn At 09:18 PM 08/03/2000 -0700, you wrote: >I am looking for a lost contact from Apimondia in Vancouver last year. = >I was interested in the Karl Fritz honey extractor, had some = >correspondence with an American or Canadian resource to buy them from = >but lost it. Can anyone assist? > ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2000 19:40:43 GMT Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: ivan pechanec Subject: Hive construction Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Questions on building bee hives: Why not oak for frame construction? No. 2 oak is about the same price as ponderosa pine. Oak will outlast pine as long as it stays dry. Why not cedar for the bottom board? Cedar will tolerate moisture better than pine. How about using water based poly on the inside of the hive to protect from moisture and other damp materials. The surface will be "slick" compared to bare wood but the wood would last a lot longer. Also, based on your experiences, what wood part of a hive fails first? Ivan Pechanec(wood worker first, bee keeper second?) ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2000 20:32:51 -0500 Reply-To: boby@lakecountry.net Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Bob Young Subject: Re: Hive construction MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I have built several bottom boards from western red cedar fence pickets, they work just fine. I have also constructed hive bodies from western red cedar and even redwood. Again no problems whatsoever. In my experience the cypress hive bodies from Rossman Apiaries in Ga. are excellent. They are a bit heavier than ponderosa pine, but cypress will last forever. I don't even paint them. Bob Young Lindale, TX ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2000 22:32:15 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Logan VanLeigh Subject: Re: Hive construction MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ivan pechanec wrote: > > Questions on building bee hives: > > Why not oak for frame construction? Nailing. > > How about using water based poly on the inside of the hive to protect from > moisture and other damp materials. The surface will be "slick" compared to > bare wood but the wood would last a lot longer. The bees do that just fine themselves and in my experience they don't like painted (in any form) insides to their homes. Logan ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 5 Aug 2000 02:03:08 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Scott Moser Subject: Re: Hive Construction Greetings All, Ivan asked about various types of wood to make hive bodies from. Being a woodworker myself, I have had a lot of discussion about the subject with others, and have made a couple of discoveries about the different types of wood. First, most woodenware is produced from one of the pine species because it is easy to work, easy to find, and bees accept it readily. Another fine wood to use is of course cypress, but unless you order the bodies, or live near the swamp areas of the south, cypress wood is tough to find. Unless you have the proper equipment, you will wear out many of your power tools trying to work oak. Various types of cedar are mentioned often, but for use only as an outer cover or bottom board. Bees have a difficult time accepting it as a hive body. And no matter what you do, Eastern Red Cedar is very seldom accepted in any use in a hive. Hope that helps! Scott ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 5 Aug 2000 08:23:51 EDT Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Richard Spiekhout Subject: Re: Hive construction MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit oak is heavy. This is a concern to most bekeepers and the older you get the more it matters. I build my hives out of cedar. It is light and rot resistant but it is not as strong so I treat them carefully. Who knows, cedar is supposed to help in closets and such with moths, maybe mites don't like it either. The bees don't seem to mine. Richard In central Ky. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 5 Aug 2000 11:27:30 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Bob Harrison Subject: heat and humidity and varroa Hello all, In reading the "Ventilator Response" by Gary Stearns on page 5 of the Aug.2000 Bee Culture Gary puts forth a different method of living with varroa from his standpoint. Quote from Gary Stearns,Bee Cool Ventilators: Another point to consider the varroa mite comes from the tropics(lots of heat and humidity). What happens when you change their environment by removing some of that heat and humidity? I do have the varroa(small amount)in my hives and don't treat at all,and my bees survive the winters and are very strong hives. Is the Bee cool Ventilator a realistic tool in the IPM fight against varroa? Bob Harrison Missouri,U.S. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 5 Aug 2000 22:54:59 -0500 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Al Subject: Re: heat and humidity and varroa In-Reply-To: <200008051603.MAA02835@listserv.albany.edu> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII In a conversation with Diana Sammataro last year she mentioned that Varroa (and I believe mites in general) tend to be a bit "leaky". Good air flow when a mite is "questing" for a host could lead to a higher mortality rate. We are in the middle of our high heat season in Florida right now. I just split a large hive and in the burr comb between two supers I broke open well over 100 drone cells. A good inspection found no sign of mites in this hive. This hive has seen no treatment this year. I am about to inspect a couple of hives for mite load in the next few weeks. I will have to see how the other hives are doing. I had to treat some hives this year so I will have to compare the ones treated with Apistan to the untreated hives. I am considering an experiment where I put in a sticky board and lift the brood frames one at a time and spray them with sugar water to induce grooming. Very labor intesive but if I find a high mite drop it may be something to add to SOP for a hive inspection. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 08:10:00 +1000 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: T & M Weatherhead MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Bob Harrison wrote > Another point to consider the varroa mite comes from the tropics(lots of > heat and humidity). What happens when you change their environment by > removing some of that heat and humidity? I do have the varroa(small > amount)in my hives and don't treat at all,and my bees survive the winters > and are very strong hives. With the recent review of the varroa mite by Dr. Denis Anderson it is now the case that the original Varroa jacobsoni did come from the tropics. However, the varroa mite that is in hives of Apis mellifera around the world is actually a newly described species Varroa destructor. The one of the main haplotype in this group comes from Korea which is certainly not tropical. Whilst I am not in a position to be able to comment on what happens when you change the environment i.e. heat and humidity, I thought I should correct the bit about coming from the tropics so this can be factored into the equation when people are considering their responses. Trevor Weatherhead ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 06:36:04 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Bill Truesdell Subject: Re: heat and humidity and varroa MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit As has been pointed out, we are dealing with more than one strain of varroa. It is interesting that the Russians use heat to combat Varroa, so it would seem that the cooling effect of the hive ventilator would do little to combat the far-east varroa and might be counter productive. There were some studies done on dark painted hives to see if the additional heat load had any effect on Varroa. The results were fairly typical when it comes to Varroa. Yes, it had an effect on reducing them in some hives and no, it had little effect on others. Ambiguous, but the conclusion of the researchers was that it made little difference. Bill Truesdell Bath, ME ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 10:21:55 -0400 Reply-To: "Keith B. Forsyth" Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: "Keith B. Forsyth" Subject: EAS 2000 Salisbury Maryland MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi: Whew, what a week in Salisbury for the annual Eastern Apicultural Society short course and meeting. More details will follow I am sure. One item of note, Bee-l's own Aaron Morris, received his EAS Master Beekeepers. This is a tough course, with 15 attempting the tests and only 4 completing the 3 sections on the first attempt. Congratulations to and Aaron and the other new Master Beekeepers. Next years EAS Conference will be on Cape Cod, August 6-10, 2001. Try www.capecod.com/bcba/eas2001.html for further details. Keith ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 06:05:51 -0400 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: Aaron Morris Subject: HONEY AND WINE SECTION OF THE SHREWSBURY FLOWER SHOW. MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" HONEY AND WINE SECTION OF THE SHREWSBURY FLOWER SHOW. FRIDAY 11 AND SATURDAY 12 AUGUST 2000. Stewards are required at this prestigious event and visitors to the UK during this period would be made MOST WELCOMED. We had a steward from Toronto last year and he finished up as a radio/newspaper personality and the same could easily happen to you. For just a couple of hours chatting to the general public, the rest of the day is yours, and I will ensure you get free entry. Interested, then email me direct at ludlowbe@freenetname.co.uk Shrewsbury, 'The Town of Flowers', is the county town of Shropshire and located in the West Midlands of the UK. Looking at your map - adjoining Wales so pretty spectacular scenery. Look forward to meeting you all. Ken Hoare Stewarding Secretary ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 15:38:48 +0200 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: crpost Subject: APIMONDIA 2001 - SOUTH AFRICA Comments: cc: letoit , Joe Hugill , confplan@iafrica.com MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Greetings As industry rep for the Western Cape, I attended the meeting of the SA Federation of Beefarmers Associations this past weekend in Kwa-Zulu Natal. We were invited to attend an information session on Friday afternoon before the main meeting, at the International Conference Centre (ICC) in Durban. This is the proposed venue for the 2001 Apimondia congress. It seemed to those of us attending, to be a most suitable venue. The facilities are (according to those reps that attended previous congresses) more than sufficient as regards physical infrastructure and all the other requirements for the event. It is also a short stroll away from the beaches in Durban where the water temperature (mid-winter) was a balmy 19 degrees C. The rolling hills of Natal make a beautiful backdrop for the city and our journey down to the coast from the top of the pass, was spectacular. We were introduced to the organizing committee, the conference planners and the exhibition managers. Feedback was provided on many of the issues surrounding the planning of the event and questions were answered to our the satisfaction. Exhibitors have already started taking up the offered exhibition space, many enquiries for second circulars have been received and the financial constraints that hampered the development of the organizing process for a while, have been overcome. Apparently one of the next events on the planning calendar, involves the visit to South Africa and the venue, by Apimondia's executive this coming September. We look forward to meeting them. I would like to invite anyone with questions related to the event, conditions or contacts to address those to myself or any of the organizers. In particular Adriaan du Toit (letoit@global.co.za) or Joe Hughill (saronde@ilink.nis.za). Should you need information on Durban in particular, visit www.durban.org.za. The visitor's bureau in that city may be reached at funinthesun@iafrica.com. Living in Cape Town, I could also provide contacts for Cape based facilities, should you so wish. The conference planners may be reached at confplan@iafrica.com. You may also visit the web site www.apimondia2001.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 09:15:23 -0600 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: The Christensens Subject: Re: heat and humidity and varroa MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Howdy Folks; as I follow this discussion on temperature affecting varroa, I keep thinking about the research that shows the bees have a tremendous ability to regulate the temperature in the hive. I attended the bee-masters short course at Simon Frasier, and one of the presentations made was on thermal regulation. The young lady making the presentation referred to research demonstrating that hives placed in temperature extremes were able to maintain the temperature in the broodnest to within one degree + or - of normal. (Sorry I don't recall who did the research) My point being that if temperature is going to be used as a varroa control then the temperature of the broodnest would need to be affected. How would this be accomplished without totaly disrupting the bees? The other thought that comes to mind is that if varroa is very sensitive to temperature then it would likely only be the developing varroa. Other wise everytime a bee flew outside of the hive the varroa would be killed. What say ye? Leon. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 22:27:06 +0100 Reply-To: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology Sender: Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology From: James Kilty Subject: Re: heat and humidity and varroa In-Reply-To: <200008051603.MAA02832@listserv.albany.edu> MIME-Version: 1.0 In message <200008051603.MAA02832@listserv.albany.edu>, Bob Harrison writes >Another point to consider the varroa mite comes from the tropics(lots of >heat and humidity). What happens when you change their environment by >removing some of that heat and humidity? Like the Western Honeybee, the Eastern one ranges from north to south. In the north in Japan and China it gets very cold in winter. So I think the argument is based on a false premise. (That doesn't mean of course that reducing humidity and temperature won't work!!) Also, the story I tell people is that the Trans-Siberian Railway let Russian beekeepers move them to the far east (Vladivostok was at the other end of the line) and they brought varroa back with them. I have been told, (perhaps someone could verify or contradict this) that there was a mutation sometime in the 30's as colonies were not dying before that time. The mite moved steadily westwards in Europe reaching the UK in the late 80's becoming evident in the early 90's. (Sorry I don't know the way it got to N. America. Perhaps someone could point me to a resume of the various routes of movement we have discovered? This would help my basic course. > I do have the varroa(small >amount)in my hives and don't treat at all,and my bees survive the winters >and are very strong hives. More and more postings seem to make this claim. I wonder about the 5 reported strains of varroa. Would it be possible to identify the strain of your varroa and of any other where colonies survive without treatment? What about their hygienic behaviour - can you assess it? Have you looked at any dead mites with a magnifying glass - are any legs bitten off? Do you have a mesh floor which keeps the mites down if they are groomed off? Are there other factors we should be looking for and either breeding into our bees or putting into our practices? -- James Kilty