British man claims to have bred indestructible bees

A British man claims to have bred a strain of bee capable of protecting itself from a deadly parasite that is wiping out the environmentally vital insect.

Published: 7:30AM BST 25 Aug 2010

Ron Hoskins, a 79-year-old beekeeper, lost tens of thousands of bees after the parasitic varroa mite entered Britain in 1992.

The mite poses a threat to mankind because the billions of bees it kills world-wide are crucial to pollinating crops and plants.

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 the work as ''exciting''.

Mr Hoskins, a former heating engineer from Swindon, Wilts., described the situation as ''serious' and warned that ''if the bees die, we die''.

He said: ''What I want to do is redevelop the British bee so that it can protect itself against these varroa mites.

''If all the bees in the world die out then we die out - the situation is really that serious.

''Humans are reliant on completely reliant on bees for pollinating crops and plants which produce oxygen.

''We are hoping that drones from my 'grooming' bees will mate with wandering female virgin queens and spread the footprint across Britain.

''This is not a short term solution and it will take a lot of work but it could be our only hope of saving the bee.''

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 beekepers lost 17 per cent of their colonies in the last year.

The mite lays eggs on bee larvae, which suck their blood and stunt the growth of their wings so they can't fly.

They also attach to the necks of adult bees and sap their strength.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/7963075/British-man-claims-to-have-bred-indestructible-bees.html