Daily Mail gets it wrong on causes of colony collapse disorder #CCD #bees

The consensus across the world is that colony collapse disorder (CCD) is not caused by the varroa mite, which this article strongly suggests.

from www.dailymail.co.uk

A British beekeeper is breeding a strain of bee which can protect itself from a deadly parasitic mite that is wiping out colonies across the world.

Beekeeper Ron Hoskins from Swindon who has bred a strain of bees which can protect themselves from the deadly parasitic varroa mite

Now Mr Hoskins, who has carried out research on his colonies for 18 years, has isolated and is breeding a strain of bees which groom each other to remove the mites.

He is now taking sperm from these bees and artificially inseminating queens from other hives to allow the new breed to spread through Britain.

The British Beekeepers' Association, which represents 18,000 beekeepers, yesterday described his work as 'exciting'.

The varroa mite entered Britain in 1992 and spread across the country - killing millions of bees.

A survey released in May 2010 by the British Beekeepers' Association revealed that beekeepers lost 17 per cent of their colonies in the last year. Read more at www.dailymail.co.uk