Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Identifying Nosema

Interesting facts from Nosema Disease Diagnosis and Control:
  • Spore explosively uncoils when it hits the bee's gut and passed from bee to bee through feces
  • Disease increases when bees cannot leave hive for cleansing flight
  • sample size is as big as 100 bees
Questions
  • What are the best conditions for nosema to thrive?
  • Why must dead bees be soaked in alcohol longer than live bees?
Next time I'm in the apiary I will look for feces in the hive to see if they are taking cleansing flights or not.


1 comment:

  1. I believe cold and damp are the conditions of choice for nosema.
    I can't think of any reason why dead bees should be soaked longer. I will ask the provincial apiarist next time I see him.

    ReplyDelete