Disease Check
Arbeiten am Bienenstand
A checking look at the brood nest is part of every inspection.
A checking look at the brood nest is part of every inspection. Healthy brood is capped solidly, evenly, and slightly domed, the larvae lie pearly white and glossy in their cells.
Warning signs are a patchy, shotgun-like brood pattern, sunken or perforated cell cappings, and light brown, slimy cell contents. If it can be drawn out into a thread with a matchstick, that is the classic sign of American Foulbrood, which is notifiable in Germany. A foul smell only appears with heavy infestation. Loose larval mummies, white to grayish black, point to chalkbrood, sac-shaped larvae in a hook or boat shape point to sacbrood, deformed wings point to viruses carried by the varroa mite.
If foulbrood is suspected, do not move anything between hives, do not swap combs, do not reuse tools without cleaning them. Instead, call in the certified bee inspector.