I wasn't going to comment as is usual whenever Amm or native bees are mentioned it just descends into argument and sniping.
One thing that is always brought up is that dark bees are nasty and not productive.
well, mixed race dark bees can be but my near amm's are lovely and calm and produce more than enough Honey for my needs.
Also, why are bees always measured by honey crop? yes it's critical for those that rely on it for a living but as has been said before, you can site the same bees in two different places or in the same place in two different years and get huge variation in the crop, surely even poor Honey gatherers would out do Super bees if sited in the right place?
I am a relatively recent convert to 'natives' and I'm very happy with them, I don't keep bees to fill the garage with Honey buckets but they do a reasonable job regardless, maybe I keep near natives because I don't like the idea of them joining the ever growing list of extinct or endangered.
I will be using I.I at some point but so far drone flooding around 1/2 mile away from where my mating apiary is seems to be going reasonably well.
Availability is a huge issue and often queens come from a fair distance away but then it's common to reintroduce other animals to where they used to be under the banner of conservation, far better that than just breeding from local mutts pretending that they are something that they aren't which seems to be BIBBA advice.
Anyway, there it is, my thoughts on the whole thing, I'll await the replies telling me I'm talking testicles
