Rinderer studied the Russian bees in the Primorsky Territory, then imported them to the United States under a federal permit.
Hardy Adaptation
The domestic honeybee and the Russian honeybee are the same species, Apis mellifera. But the Russian bees have had to develop resistance to survive in their homeland, the mite-infested Primorsky region.
In tests, varroa mite reproduction on Russian bees was two to three times lower than on domestic breeds. Rinderer said this will mean lower miticide control costs, less stress on bees, timelier honey harvests, and less chance for mites to develop a resistance to pesticides.
The Russian-bee-release program is in the second year of a two-year cycle. In 2000, the Russian queen bees that were being sold had been mated to domestic drone bees. Colonies produced by these Russian queens are hybrid colonies.
Scientists cannot predict the mite resistance or honey production of all the different hybrids.
This year, queen breeders will be able to produce Russian drones to mate with their Russian queens, so beekeepers will be able to buy Russian queens that will produce pure Russian bee colonies.
(c) 2001 Environmental News Network
