Breeding Groups

[Eyeman]

Sorry can't help much in my neck of the woods.
There is:
Cheshire Honeybee Improvement Partnership (CHIP) affiliated to BIBBA and supported by the CBKA. Anyone know if this is still running?

Not sure if there are any subversive groups?
My own small scale queen breeding operation selects for behavioural and performance characteristics.

 

[madasafish]

Sorry can't help much in my neck of the woods.
There is:
Cheshire Honeybee Improvement Partnership (CHIP) affiliated to BIBBA and supported by the CBKA. Anyone know if this is still running?

Not sure if there are any subversive groups?
My own small scale queen breeding operation selects for behavioural and performance characteristics.

"This group became inactive in 2017; please contact the groups secretary if you are interested. Archive:"
https://bibba.com/chip/

 

[B+.]

My own small scale queen breeding operation selects for behavioural and performance characteristics.

It's the independent groups I am particularly interested in Eyeman. They can't all have gone over to the dark side

 

[Swarm]

People in glass houses

 

[mbc]

I've seen BIBBA from the inside. Like any cult, it only appears to be those things so long as you agree with what they're saying. Things get ugly when you show you have a brain of your own (as you and Icanhopit/cheers have shown)

FYI I've also seen bibba from the inside when I joined to get favourable admission rates to their excellent centenary conference at Llangollen a few years ago. I met some lovely people and got to see loads of excellent presentations and was given nothing but a warm and friendly welcome and I think the several thousand attendees would have all gone away with the same uplifting buzz. You must be seriously twisted to see shadows of a cult amongst that friendly lot.

 

[B+.]

You must be seriously twisted to see shadows of a cult amongst that friendly lot.

Actually.....they were much more nasty than you are when I cancelled my membership. But, you prove my point. Just because you disagree with someone/something, you don't have to be offensive.
For a thread that specifically wasn't about BIBBA, you've made it precisely that. Thanks for nothing.

 

[charlievictorbravo]

This thread reminds me of a scene from the Life of Brian

Splitter!

CVB

 

[Millet]

This thread reminds me of a scene from the Life of Brian

Splitter!

CVB

 

[B+.]

Its a curious thing. The BBKA advocate that local associations form their own breeding groups. That is what I proposed. Why, then, is there so much dissent?

 

[wightbees]

Why are you choosing local now B+, just curious.

 

[B+.]

Why are you choosing local now B+, just curious.

I have a lot of knowledge/experience using the techniques recommended by Coloss (http://www.coloss.org/2018/01/17/st...ing-and-selection-of-apis-mellifera-queens/#3.). Why shouldn't I help my local association establish a breeding group?
I believe the evidence will show I'm on the right track. In fact, the breeding values announced yesterday confirm that I am.

 

[SDM]

SNHBS do ... details under 'Projects'. There's also one on Ardnamurchan.

r.

I thought Kate's project was on hold after suffering heavy losses. She certainly wasn't offering queens last year. Pretty sure she planned to relocate as pollen shortage throughout the year was a major issue.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

I know BIBBA have a black bee bias but I thought that BIBBA were not being quite so fixated on black bees and reverting to "native" types they thought were around a couple of hundered years ago, and they were trying to promote more general local breeding ?

 

[Beefriendly]

I know BIBBA have a black bee bias but I thought that BIBBA were not being quite so fixated on black bees and reverting to "native" types they thought were around a couple of hundered years ago, and they were trying to promote more general local breeding ?

Whilst possibly true it seems to ignore the basic facts that mongrels, by nature of being a mongrels, don't breed true. And unless you use II or have access to isolated mating sites any crosses are essentially random.
This is not a good basis for a breeding program.

 

[B+.]

Whilst possibly true it seems to ignore the basic facts that mongrels, by nature of being a mongrels, don't breed true. And unless you use II or have access to isolated mating sites any crosses are essentially random.
This is not a good basis for a breeding program.

100% right.
However, f1s from the class A breeders can be used as drone mothers to disperse the best genes from, probably, the biggest bee breeding programme in the world. This would give Beds a terrific start. It wouldn't take much for the microscopy group to learn II too.
We could be delivering our first batch of test queens to the training apiaries by summer.
It just needs a mandate from the members.

 

[alldigging]

so do you have a set of guidelines for how you'd like to see it run?

 

[B+.]

so do you have a set of guidelines for how you'd like to see it run?

I think thats putting the cart before the horse. Let's see if the members approve the formation of a group first

 

[Hebeegeebee]

Whilst possibly true it seems to ignore the basic facts that mongrels, by nature of being a mongrels, don't breed true. And unless you use II or have access to isolated mating sites any crosses are essentially random.
This is not a good basis for a breeding program.

To promote argument ....
So you're saying that there is no point EVER bothering to chose from a good queen and breed from her; so I can get a nasty 2nd generation Buckfast and breed from her and that's OK? or a 5-frames-of-brood-before-swarming queen and breed from her and that's OK too? Because that doesn't tie in with beekeepers who do select from decent queens year after year and do improve their stock.

 

[foghornleghorn]

I have a lot of knowledge/experience using the techniques recommended by Coloss (http://www.coloss.org/2018/01/17/st...ing-and-selection-of-apis-mellifera-queens/#3.). Why shouldn't I help my local association establish a breeding group?
I believe the evidence will show I'm on the right track. In fact, the breeding values announced yesterday confirm that I am.

What does the varroa rating mean? I know its % of population mean, but does that link up to %vsh or mite buildup?

 

[B+.]

What does the varroa rating mean? I know its % of population mean, but does that link up to %vsh or mite buildup?

The varroa index is a combination of two tests: the wash/sugar shake test and the pin killed brood test (three, if you include the natural mite drop which establishes the initial infestation). Yes, it is a measure of population increase but is a measure of "hygienic" behaviour. My figures all had an "*" next to the varroa index because I didn't do the pin-killed brood test (due to family matters and a conflict with the preparations for the BBKA Bee Breeders assessment last year). Consequently, my varroa index figures are much lower than they should be.
The VSH test is very labour intensive, so, it is only performed on high scoring hygiene colonies. It involves manually uncapping 30-50 purple eyed pupae and counting the age/gender of any mites found. In a nutshell, we are looking for colonies with non-reproducing mites.